Winter's Help
by w.wayweary
Summary: “I know your wishes and desires, your hopes and your dreams. I will also make one of them come true.” “You two have had so much thrown at you, and will also have more thrown at you, so you both need one thing to have when you do not have each other.” BxE
1. December

The day was perfect. Well, perfect for Edward and I. We were in Port Angeles wondering around the stores and restaurants. Edward said that I should spend as much time with people as I can now because when I'm a vampire I'll have to be away from them for a long time.

"Do you want anything to eat?" He asked me, his breath tickling my ear.

I shook my head, "Not yet, we just got here and I ate breakfast two hours ago." I said rolling my eyes.

"Where do you want to go?" Edward asked me.

I looked around deciding where to go when I felt someone tap on my shoulder. I turned around to be greeted by a woman in her mid-twenties. She was extremely beautiful, with sharp features jet black hair and pale skin, and she wore sunglasses so I couldn't see her eye color.

Edward growled as he saw her staring at me, and I froze as she took of her sunglasses. Her eyes were blood red just like the eyes of James, Victoria, Laurent and all the newborns. She gave me a kind smile when she saw my fear and laughed at Edward's growl. "Don't worry, I'm not here to hurt Bella, Edward."

I could feel my features unfreeze into a confused expression as Edward remained rigid by my side. "How do you know our names?"

She gave a light laugh, "I know a lot of things about you two, Isabella Marie Swan soon to be Cullen, and Edward Anthony Masen Cullen. I know about your family also. I also know why Edward can not read my mind, or yours." She smiled knowingly at Edward. "I know your wishes and desires, your hopes and your dreams. I will also make one of them come true."

Ok, this was weird. Some strange vampire comes up to us knowing all about us, and is going to help us? I was not scared, only confused. "Why?" I wondered aloud.

"You two have had so much thrown at you, and will also have more thrown at you, so you both need one thing to have when you do not have each other." She gave me a soft smile and I could only wonder what her strange words held. "Edward, give me your hand."

"Excuse me?" Edward growled out.

"Do I have to spell it out for you?" She rolled her eyes dramatically. "Give me your hand." She said with such authority that Edward held out his hand palm up. Woah, this lady was more bipolar than Edward. "Bella, I'm going to give you quick instructions, so listen carefully." I nodded as I made sure I was paying close attention to each word that came out of her mouth.

"I will help you put Edward into the car, and I will give you the keys. Ignore the speed limit and go to the Cullens' home. Wait out six days and he shall be fine and perfectly healthy. It will only last for two weeks so make the most of it. It will take another three days to go back. Alright?"

My head was spinning. What was going to happen to Edward? What would last two weeks? "I am confused, what do you mean…?"

"There is no time to explain, Edward, this might sting…" The woman rushed out as she touched the middle of Edward's palm. He immediately fell to the ground with a cry of pain when her skin made contact with his.

"Edward!" I fell to my knees and grab his hand where she touched it. There was nothing wrong there, no mark or anything.

"Bella," He choked out between cries of anguish. "My hand, Bella, make it stop!"

I looked up at the woman, "What have you done to him? What is happening?"

She did not answer me, but picked up Edward and placed him in a passenger's seat in a black Porsche. "You can keep the car. Don't worry, it is not permanent but unfortunately it lasts for six days. I always did hate that part…"

"What are you talking about?" I screamed. Tears ran down my face as I heard Edward's cries for help.

She shook her head and shoved keys into my hand avoiding contact with my skin. "No time to explain," she said quickly, starting to leave.

"Wait!" I grabbed her hand, surprisingly she did not pull back. "At least tell me who and what you are."

"I am December," she answered, "and I am an Angel of Death." I gaped at her for a moment as she disappeared into the buildings and crowds of Port Angeles. I honestly would have been more surprised if I was not already preoccupied with my love.

Keys gripped tightly in my hands, I dashed to the side of the car and jumped into the driver's seat. With the tears streaming out of my eyes and my hand shaking, it took me a couple tried but I was able to stick it in. Wiping the tears from my eyes, I tried, as best as I could with the love of my life screaming in pain right next to me, to calm myself down enough to drive. Once I could see, I drove faster than maybe even Edward has ever driven. Even then it seemed like the car would not go fast enough. Each of his cries made me push harder on the gas pedal, and pray that I would not get into an accident. This would definitely not be the time.

Fifteen minutes later, I reached the house. I jumped out of the car and started screaming for help from anyone. Alice was at once by my side, she, Jasper, and Esme were the only ones home. Carlisle was at the hospital and Rosalie and Emmett were who knows where. "Bella? Bella, what is wrong? Where's Edward? Where did you get the car?"

I started rambling on through my sobs and tears, "Edward is in the car, Alice I don't know what happened, there was this girl, she told me to come here and all these other things about six days and she gave me the car and Alice I don't even know what's happening to him! She said she was an angel of death, is he dying! Oh my god, he's probably dying, oh Alice," I cried each sob becoming harder than the first, as I heard Edward cry out saying the pain was getting worse. Was he dying? How would I survive if he left this earth? Would I be able to?

Esme, hearing my hysterical crying, came out and at once started comforting me, "Oh Bella, quickly Alice, get Jasper to put Edward on his bed in his room." Out of the corner of my eye I saw Jasper pick my Edward and take him into the house while Esme carried me inside and to the living room. "Jasper, please try and calm Bella down, I fear she is going hysterical."

I felt an overwhelming surge of calm enter my body and I embraced it, clinging to it as if to save my dear life. If only to pretend everything was alright.

I stopped crying and I was able to calm down a bit, "Bella?" Alice asked cautiously. I nodded for her to continue. "Can you please tell us what happened?"

I winced as more of Edward's cries rang through the house. I told them every single detail, not missing one part. After I was done I waited patiently for their responses.

"She said it would be over in six days, right?" Esme asked.

I nodded, "She said to 'Wait out six days' she also said that she always hates this part where it lasts six days. What is happening to him?"

"I have not the faintest idea, Jasper did you call Carlisle?" Esme asked him, her face contorted with worry for her 'youngest' son. Jasper gave her a nod. "Thank you, maybe he will be able to help us solve this."

"I am going to go by him," I told them and went up the stairs toward Edward's cries.

I knelt by the bed he lay in and kissed his forehead as he screamed, tears ran down my face as I whispered "I love you" into his ears multiples of time.

"Bella," He croaked. "Bella, please stop it, please." He screamed in torment.

"Stop what? Edward what hurts?" I asked frantically, looking at his hand where his pain started.

"The fire, the fire, it's so hot it's cold Bella! Please, put it out!" He cried, and I cried along. My heart tearing to shreds as I felt helpless beside him.

"I can't Edward. I'm sorry." I looked all over his hand and his wrist. Something caught my eye. There were blue lines. Bright blue lines, like the ones that matched my wrist. They looked almost like veins, as if blood was pulsing through his body towards his heart. I carefully placed my fingers on his wrist.

There was a pulse, the flesh was warm.

"Bella?" I heard a voice calling from the door way, I looked up to see that it was Carlisle.

"Oh Carlisle, thank God you're hear, Edward-" I started.

"Yes, Alice told me, do you have any idea what is happening to him?" He asked kneeling down beside me. I shook my head.

"No, but feel this," I said, placing Edward's wrist in his hands. His eyes widened.

"There is a pulse, and it is warm." He said astonished. I nodded.

"He said that there was a fire, but it is so hot it's cold. Carlisle, what is happening?" I asked, confused by it all, and then I froze as he became thoughtful.

Edward always said he liked how I was warm, and human.

"Carlisle, he is turning into a human."


	2. Emeralds

**I do not own the twilight series or any or it's characters.**

_**When we last left off…**_

_Edward always said he liked how I was warm, and human._

"_Carlisle, he is turning into a human."_

Carlisle nodded his head, thoughtfully. "Yes, that could be an explanation, though we are not completely sure yet. We are going to have to wait until six days are over." I nodded, cringing at the thought of Edward being in pain for six days…

_Six Days Later…_

Charlie had only allowed me over for the first night and the second, the other days I could only spend at there house during the day, and then Charlie would force me to come home. I barely attained any sleep when I was at Charlie's, my thoughts full of what was happening to Edward. Sometimes Alice would come and she would take me back to her house, but she stopped coming saying 'I needed my rest'. As if I could sleep while Edward might be dying or changing.

Edward…becoming a human. It was one of those thoughts that kept me up at night wondering what would happen when Edward was my same…'species' as Jacob would put it. Would he wake up early in morning, or sleep in late? What kind of food did he like? What kind of sodas? Would he still drive really fast with his fast reflexes?

On the night that Edward's change stopped, Alice invited me over for a sleepover. Charlie, of course, said yes. I was glued to Edward's side the whole night. He had begun to sweat, and a light blush was over his cheeks. I picked up a wet washcloth on the nightstand beside the bed and dabbed his forehead.

"Bella," He groaned.

"Shh," I calmed him, though I knew I was really calming myself. I have never seen Edward this helpless before, except for when Jane was torturing him. Even then he had not made a sound. "It is almost over, Edward. Don't worry."

A loud scream broke through the air as Edward arms flew everywhere, hitting the side of my face and sending me down. Ow, even as a human Edward was strong. I rubbed the side of my cheek. That was going to leave a bruise. I picked up the washcloth and placed it on the side of the table, attempting to calm him down by whispering into his ear. He looked like he was trying to calm down, but if this change was like the vampire change, the end would be the most painful. Edward gave one more scream that clawed at my heart and fell into silence.

I bent my head close to his chest and listened carefully. The soft thumps were faint, but definitely there. His slow heart was in such contrast to my frantic beating one. Slow uneven breaths came out of his agape mouth. They sounded much needed now, as if his mouth was gripping for air like he was suffocating. I looked up to his face and whispered into his ear, "Edward, please wake up. I love you."

Bright green orbs opened up and lit my world. They were much different from the topaz ones I had become so acquainted to, but I could already tell that these would dazzle me all the same.

"Bella?" His voice was different somehow. Less…velvety. It was remarkable all the same, and I would die just to hear it one more time, but it sounded less smooth. He sounded human. His features seemed a little softened also, he was still remarkably beautiful, just not inhumanly beautiful.

"Yes my love, I am here." I smiled sadly into the sparkling emeralds as he attempted to sit up, but his arms failed him and he lay back down.

"How long did it take?" He asked his eyes glued onto me.

I shifted uncomfortably under his gaze, "About six days, just like December said."

"Who?"

"December, the Death Angel." He gave me a confused look. "She was the one that…well I don't really know what she did but she turned you into a...human I guess."

His eyes became wide as he sat up straight almost falling off the bed. I stood up with him as he lent on my shoulder for support and he staggered his way over to the mirror. He stared unto his reflection in awe and touched the smooth reflective surface. "I'm human…" He murmured. "That would explain your smell and my sight."

This time I gave a confused glance, he saw it through the reflection of the glass and turned towards me to give me an answer. "You don't smell like freesias and lavender anymore. Just like…" He thought for a moment.

"Strawberry shampoo?" I offered.

"Yes," He smiled. "Strawberry shampoo. As for my sight everything seems duller, less defined. I forgot how humans are able to see."

I chuckled, "Welcome to my life."

He laughed along while leaning into me, and then he collapsed.

"Edward!" I yelled. He groaned holding his stomach.

"It hurts," He muttered, while his stomach gave a loud gurgle.

I laughed, "Don't worry you're just hungry. I guess you're like a newborn vampire, really thirsty. Or in this case hungry."

"Well I am thirsty also."

"For blood?"

"No, water would be very refreshing at the moment." He said with a smiled. He lent on me as I helped him get onto the bed and I went to get food and water.

Carlisle met me at the door, "How is he?"

"He is human." I answered. "He is also hungry and very thirsty. For water."

Carlisle nodded, "I thought he would be, Esme is downstairs in the kitchen cooking a buffet. I will go check on Edward's health." I nodded in response and started downstairs. _Wait out six days and he shall be fine and perfectly healthy._ I remembered December's words. At least some of it was starting to make sense, but none of my wishes were really granted. I was still human, but Edward…Hadn't he always wanted to be human?

I walked into the kitchen and was greeted by a flood of aromas. Esme was standing over the stove while moving at vampire speed to various other places in the kitchen every now and then. On the table there were already five different courses, all of which looked delicious.

"Uh Esme?" I called over the boiling pot and clattering pots and pans. Her head snapped up toward me and she smiled, she looked so happy I don't think I had the heart to tell her we would not be able to eat everything she was preparing. So I took the weenie way out. "You're doing a great job, could you help me bring this up?"

She smiled and I was glad I chose the weenie way out. "Thank you Bella. I'll call Alice to get it. I would not want chicken tarragon to turn out badly. Oh and help yourself to have something to Bella, you must be starving." She smiled and went back to the cooking.

"So," A voice said out of nowhere to my left. I gave a small squeak as Alice laughed. "What do you need help with?"

In the end Alice took all the food (don't ask how, I am still astounded) I only took the pitcher of water. As we entered Edward's door, he smiled at me, and the food. I sat the pitcher of water on the nightstand and poured him a glass while Alice put the food on the bed next to him.

"Well, he is perfectly healthy, humanly speaking. He just needs to eat and adjust and he will be fine. He is very weak at the moment but that can easily be cured with sleep." Carlisle told me, and I smiled as Edward ate a loaf of bread in one bite.

"This tastes delicious," Edward said with his mouth full. I laughed has he tried to eat a steak without utensils.

"Edward, you have a fork and knife." Carlisle reminded him, he sounded like he was talking to a five-year old. Edward smiled sheepishly and began cutting.

He began to pick up his glass of water, but it slipped out of his hand and fell to the floor. Luckily, the floor was carpeted so it didn't shatter, but the water spilt everywhere.

"I'll clean it!" Alice spoke and ran down stairs and was back in one second with a paper towel and three other glasses smiling innocently at Edward.

He glared at her. "I hate not being able to read your mind."

She smiled hugely at him, "I know, I love being able to see your future." She replied as she poured him another glass.

He gave her another glare, which was actually pretty funny since he wasn't vampire-scary anymore, and tried to pick up the glass. Keyword was try. The glass fell next to the first and spilt to where Alice had laid paper towels. He growled in frustration. "I feel so weak! I hold it so carefully so I won't crush it, but I can't crush it because I'm not strong!"

Alice laughed, "You're still relatively strong to a human." She replied, her eyes flickering to my face. Ugh, my bruise. Edward was going to hate himself for that. At least she has not told him yet and it was still forming, so you couldn't see it very well. His lack of super vision enabled him to miss her eyes flicker and glare at the two glasses at the floor.

"Here," I moved over the glasses and poured yet another. "Hold it as hard as you can and then lighten up a little until you feel comfortable holding the glass."

He took the glass from my grip and held it tightly, his knuckles becoming white. They started to gain color as he loosed his grip, and then that glass fell.

"Don't loosen it to where it will fall out!" I laughed and he scowled at the large puddled growing by his feet. "Only a little."

I poured another glass, since I didn't trust him with the full pitcher, and handed that to him. This time was a success. Alice and I clapped as he gulped down the water. "Bravo! Bravo" We shouted and he rolled his eyes.

Edward started eating an apple, realizing that he had only made a small dent in the large buffet Esme had prepared he looked up at me, "Are you hungry?"

I shook my head, "No, besides you should eat a lot since you're new."

He smiled that crooked smile and rolled his eyes, "I don't want to become fat, come on, there is enough food here for ten people."

I laughed, "Did I mention Esme was making more?" He laughed along, his laugh sounding just as musical. Alice and Carlisle had left the room so it was just Edward and I having our picnic on the bed. Esme was continually bringing more food up to us and we ate until we were stuffed. More than half of her buffet was still left when we were done, and Esme looked crestfallen so we assured her that we would eat the rest tomorrow as leftovers. Edward went to take a shower after that in his bathroom, and I decided to take one in Alice's where she already had silky red pajamas laid out for me.

The warm water felt wonderful on my knotted muscles. I felt all the stress from the past six days melt away and run with the water down the drain. I washed my hair with strawberry shampoo and conditioner. After I felt clean and refreshed I turned off the water and stepped into the steamed filled room. I scrubbed off some of the steam that fogged up the mirror and slipped on my pajamas. I brushed my hair and left it to dry on its own while I went to find Edward.

He was already laying on his bed, his eyes drooping as if he wanted to fall asleep while he stared up at the ceiling. It didn't look like he had heard me or seen me, so I decided to sneak up on him. I quietly crawled up to the side of the bed and jumped up "Boo!" He jumped startled and I yelled in happiness and laughter. "I Isabella Marie Swan scared Edward Cullen!"

He scowled, "Only because I'm human."

"Hey!" I shouted with my hand on my hip. "There is nothing wrong with being human!" I scolded. He grinned and patted the spot next to him as he slid over.

"You, my love," He said as I laid down under the covers next to him. "Are absolutely correct." I smiled and I touched his face. It was strange, I was so used to the coolness in his skin that the warmth seemed unnatural but inviting.

"You're warm."

"I know, strange isn't it?" He wondered feeling the area I had touched. He then touched my face and his became confused. "What happened here?" He asked, I felt his warm fingers brush over the brush they inflicted earlier.

"Oh, nothing." I smiled nervously. "Just me, you know, being clumsy..."

"Isabella," He said his voice stern. "Just because I am human does not mean you are a better actress. Now tell me what really happened."

I sighed loudly and relented. "Fine, but promise you won't get mad."

"Why would I be mad at you?"

"I didn't mean me. I meant don't get mad at yourself." I avoided his gaze and shifted my position to look up at the ceiling. "You see, I came earlier and I was dabbing your forehead. You screamed and your arms went flailing around and accidentally struck me. I am not angry, it was very painful so I understand-"

"I did that to you!?!" He asked astonished. I nodded slowly. He gave a large frustrated growl and sat upright. I mimicked his movements and was right next to him. I put my hand comfortingly on his shoulder he flinched away and I dejectedly wrapped my arms around my legs and laid my head on my knees as I watched him. He glared angrily at the wall. "Don't touch me Bella. I don't deserve someone as wonderfully kind as you. You were trying to help me, and I gave you a huge bruise! Even as a human I am a monster..." He started muttering.

"Edward stop," I said angrily. "This is no one's fault. Number one, I don't deserve you. Number two, it was not as if you had meant to strike me, it just happened. Number three you are not a monster! You are one of the kindest beings on the face of the earth human or not. You need to understand that you are not condemned to hell just because you strike your girlfriend on accident because you were in great pain." Edward had mimicked my position and stared into my eyes as I rambled on. His emerald gems were filled with pain and sadness but gradually became filled with love as I continued.

"I guess you're right love, but I still am very sorry." He said stroking the bruise lightly.

I smiled, "It will heal in time. Don't worry so much Edward. You're a fragile little human now to, start worrying about yourself."

He chuckled softly, "Old habits die hard." His face looked as if it had remembered something and he smiled leaning in. I closed my eyes and I felt his lips contact with mine. His lips warmer and softer unlike before. We kissed more passionately than ever and were smiling when we each needed to take a breath. "I like being human."

"I'll take either."

We laid back down and he wrapped his arms around me as we both fell asleep. "Sweet dreams, Bella."

"Sweet dreams, Edward."


	3. Given

**By the way, this is after Eclipse, so it is summer time in Forks, which means no school (:**

**Don't own Twilight Series or its characters, never will either…**

_**When we last left off…**_

_We laid back down and he wrapped his arms around me as we both fell asleep. "Sweet dreams, Bella."_

_"Sweet dreams, Edward."_

The golden sunlight streamed through the window when I woke up. I rolled over ruffling the covers softly and stared onto my beloved. He looked so peaceful and serene when he slept. His chest rose softly up and down and a small smile signified that he was dreaming pleasantly.

Deciding not to disturb him and to let him rest, I rose quietly from the bed, grabbed the clothes Alice had lain out for me and went to the bathroom to freshen up and dress. For once, Alice had lain out what I had wanted to where, a pair of jeans and a plain white t-shirt. I washed my face and brushed my teeth. I looked into the mirror and decided that I would put my hair up today.

I went back into Edward's room and laid my stuff on the couch. Edward was still sleeping soundly on his bed, but the corners of his mouth were turned down. I kissed his forehead softly and whispered into his ear. He smiled and turned over muttering unrecognizable words.

I went downstairs and was greeted by another wave of delicious scents. Esme had laid out omelettes, pancakes, waffles, fruit, toast, and various styles of eggs. "Esme, you didn't have to cook all of this for us."

She looked up to me and gave me a warm smile, "Good morning Bella, and don't worry about it, I love cooking. Now sit down, where's Edward?"

"He's still sleeping," I answered as I picked out a waffle and a cup of fruit.

She nodded, "Do you want any butter, syrup, jam…"

I nodded, "Butter and syrup are fine, thank you."

She gave me a full bottle of syrup and a container full of butter and I muttered my thanks. The waffle, like all the other things Esme made, was delicious.

"Hey Bella, how's Edward?" Emmett asked as he entered the kitchen.

I shrugged. "He's human, healthy, that kind of stuff. Glad I guess that he isn't attracted to my blood, that kind of stuff."

"So…" Emmett started a grin on his face. "He is asleep, and he can't read minds anymore?"

I nodded to both statements, "Emmett, you better not do anything. He needs his sleep."

He was about to protest but Esme cut in, "Listen to Bella, Emmett."

His face fell, so I suggested, "Don't worry Emmett. You can do whatever you're planning tomorrow."

"Sweet!" He shouted and high fived me. I laughed when I realized it didn't really matter anymore since he just woke him up. I finished my waffle and took my cup of fruit up to check on Edward.

I opened the door softly and walked in quietly. Edward was sitting upright in bed rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. He looked adorable as a human and I couldn't help but smile. "Good morning Sleepyhead."

His bronze haired head turned up toward me and he beamed. "Good morning beautiful."

I blushed and walked over to the bed eating a piece of cantaloupe. "How did you sleep?"

"Wonderfully," He replied and kissed my cheek as I picked out a grape. "I dreamt of you the whole time."

I smiled, "I dreamt of you too. Want one?" I held up a chunk of honey dew melon on my fork.

He bit the fruit off of the fork, "Delicious. How long will this last?"

"She said 'It will only last for two weeks so make the most of it'. So I am guessing two weeks."

He smiled and I could tell he was elated by the fact that he was human along with me.

"So, did Emmett wake you up?"

"That's what that was. It is so annoying not being able to read anyone's mind. Except for you, you seem to be the only one who hasn't changed at all."

I nodded, "It would seem to be that way. Esme made breakfast so if you're hungry it's ready."

He grinned, "Esme is wonderful. I'm gonna go get dressed so I will meet you down stairs." We kissed briefly and I traveled downstairs to the kitchen, where Esme was somehow able to stuff three pancakes and an omelette inside me before Edward came down. He served himself three waffles and I was amazed when he ate them in less than two minutes. Meanwhile Esme was trying to feed me three more omelettes, saying "Bella, you need all you're nutrients!"

"Esme, she is going to explode if you keep forcing her to eat!" Emmett's booming laughter filled the kitchen.

"No she won't, Bella are you still hungry?" Esme asked hopefully.

Truthfully, I did feel like I was going to explode any moment, fortunately Alice chose that time to pop in, "Hey Bella! How did you and Edward sleep?" She asked suggestively.

I rolled my eyes as Edward's and my cheeks turned scarlet, "We _slept_ soundly. Nothing else." Emmett laughed again. "Shut up Emmett." I shouted playfully and threw a grape at him, which he expertly caught.

Emmett put on an astonished hurt face, "Bella, I am like a brother to you and you are trying to kill me with a grape? Honestly, I am surprised with you!"

I put on my best sad mask, "I am terribly sorry Emmett, will you ever forgive me?"

"Hmm…" He said putting his fingers around his chin stroking his imaginary beard. "It may take some time, but yes eventually I shall forgive you!"

"Oh _thank you_ dear Emmett! I shall never be able to repay you for your kindness!" We all burst out laughing; even Esme was cracking up about our foolish display.

"Hey Edward, it's going to be sunny today, why don't you and Bella go spend time together in Seattle? You can spend time in the sun without being afraid of sparkling." Alice suggested.

"Bella?" Edward looked toward me to know my opinion.

I shrugged, "Sure, I'll just call Charlie and tell him." Alice handed me a phone and I called. Charlie said yes, as long as I am back for dinner.

Time flows faster when you want it to slow down, and it slows down when you want it to go faster. Edward and I spent the first week spending time together in the sun and eating all kinds of different foods. Edward always said that I cooked the best, even better than Esme. I blushed at that statement, knowing it was false. That was the same as if he were saying I was more beautiful that Rosalie!

The middle of the second week was the most important night in my life.

Alice knew what we were going to do before we did, so she invited me over for a sleepover at her house. Which really meant a sleepover with Edward. When Alice came to pick me up, we went to the mall instead of her house.

"Alice, I thought we were going to your house." I said nervously when we started walking into the mall.

"We are silly," she told me as if I were a child. "We just need to pick up a few _items_ first." She gave me a huge grin that I knew could hold no good.

I was right. Alice had taken me to the mall to go to Victoria's Secret, where she made me try on a number of revealing lingerie and other various _'items'_ as she liked to call them. They all made me feel absurd, but Alice kept telling me that I would thank her for this later and gave me that guilt trip whenever I said no.

So in the end I relented, but I only let her buy two things for me.

We drove home and she told Emmett and Jasper to occupy Edward while she and I did whatever she needed to get me 'ready'. She helped me put on my Victoria's Secret purchases and a light white undershirt over. She curled my hair and left it down and sprayed perfume that smelled faintly of freesias. Alice told me to sit on the bed and wait for Edward. A few seconds he entered.

I felt absolutely ridiculous about the whole thing, and I was afraid to look at Edward's expression. When I finally found the courage to, I saw that he was in awe, staring at my body. He came and started to kiss me passionately, and then we gave ourselves to each other.


	4. News

**Sorry if clichéd chapter.**

**Don't own twilight, new moon, eclipse, or any of its characters.**

_**When we last left off…**_

_We drove home and she told Emmett and Jasper to occupy Edward while she and I did whatever she needed to get me 'ready'. She helped me put on my Victoria's Secret purchases and a light white undershirt over. She curled my hair and left it down and sprayed perfume that smelled faintly of freesias. Alice told me to sit on the bed and wait for Edward. A few seconds he entered._

_I felt absolutely ridiculous about the whole thing, and I was afraid to look at Edward's expression. When I finally found the courage to, I saw that he was in awe, staring at my body. He came and started to kiss me passionately, and then we gave ourselves to each other._

**Four Days Later(Morning): Edward has 1 human day left**

_I will also make one of them come true._ December's messages were slowly beginning to unravel in my head.

The floor of Edward's bathroom was cold. How come the world was shaking?

Or was it me?

I shifted my gaze back to my hands. It was not as if it were impossible. Renée had even given me 'the talk', she had always said, 'always use protection'. Alice and I had forgotten that minor detail that Edward was human. Well, not totally. We knew that it would make him more willing to do it, since he would not be afraid of hurting me.

I guess Alice never really thought about what might happen _after _we did it. That I may, most likely, become _pregnant_.

I shivered at the word. I never really thought about having a child. When I found out that Edward was a vampire and could not have any, I gave it up. Edward was all I needed, I could give up becoming a mother for that. I had accepted this fact when I decided I wanted to become a vampire to be with Edward for an eternity. But now that all changed.

I was willing to have a child, I never considered having a child but I was not unwilling to have one. The thought of having one made me smile, especially if it was Edward's.

I felt my face drop. Renée was going to literally kill me. Not to mention Charlie. They would make me get abortion for sure. What about Edward? Would he be okay with me having a child? Or would he not want to carry the burden of taking care of one?

I breathed in a shaky breath and let it out slowly as steadily as I could. If worst came to worst and he did not want the child, or me for being pregnant, I would put on a straight face and get out of his life. There was no need for him to feel guilty of not doing something he does not want to do in the first place. I would be fine on my own. Well, I would try.

A knock on the door made me jump slightly. "Bella?" "You've been in there for a while, are you okay in there?"

I stood up carefully, threw away the test in the small basket and washed my hands taking as much time as needed. Edward already suspected something was up, he didn't need his special vampire senses to detect that. I've been up every morning very early with morning sickness. He is a very light sleeper and notices when the bed is slightly jostled. So whenever I would get up and run to the bathroom, he would be waiting when I came back, wondering what was wrong.

I turned the small lock until I heard the tiny click, signaling that it was open. I took a deep breath and put on my best, 'everything is perfectly fine, what could possibly have worried you?' look. I knew it wouldn't work, but I had to try.

I swung the white door open to reveal a very worried Edward, it's not like that was unexpected. His beautiful eyebrows were creased while the corners of his mouth were being pulled down ever so slightly. "Bella, is anything wrong?"

I forced my grin to go wider, "Nothing, of course. Where would you get a silly little idea like that, Edward?" I mentally punched myself; I was a terrible actress, what else was new?

Like expected, Edward's eyebrows rose and his beautiful green eyes looked toward me disbelievingly. "Bella."

My grin cracked and fell. I let out a deep sigh and prepared myself for the worst. Hope for the best, prepare for the worst. "Edward, about us…there is something I need to talk to you about…"

His face fell, and a great pain could be seen in his eyes. He looked away from my face and towards the wall. "I understand." His voice whispered, barely audible towards my ears. "You want me to leave don't you?" Even though I could barely hear him, I could hear his voice break as he said 'leave'.

I grabbed his face and forced him to look me in the eye. "Edward Anthony Masen Cullen. _What is wrong with you_?"

His eyes shifted from pain, to pure confusion and astonishment. "You don't want me to leave?"

"No! I would never want you to leave, _I love you_. How did you get the impression that I wanted to leave you?"

"These past few days, it seemed as though you were avoiding me." His green eyes would not meet mine. "And then today, when you asked to go somewhere alone, I kept thinking that maybe you were getting ready to leave. What was I supposed to think when you were about to talk to me 'about us'?"

I almost laughed, the whole thing sounded ridiculous. I was able to keep it down when I remembered I still had to tell him. Now it was me who wouldn't meet his eyes. "Yes about us. Umm…" I bit my bottom lip trying to stall.

"Wait," He forced my face towards his with his smooth warm hands. "You don't want me to leave?" His eyes brightening by the second.

"No, but if you want to, I will not force you to stay with me." I reassured him breaking his hold on my face.

"Now why would I do an idiotic thing like that?"

I closed my eyes so my heart wouldn't break when I saw the anger and disappointment in his eyes. "Edward. I'm pregnant."

To my utter surprise, I heard a boisterous musical laugh. Arms encircled my waist and twirled me around as my eyes flew open to see a beaming Edward. He set me down and gave me a passionate kiss.

"Bella, Bella this is _wonderful!_ How could you ever think that I would leave you for the wonderful gift you are going to give me?"

I smiled sheepishly, "Well, I didn't know if you wanted a child, so I-"

"Bella," His face turned serious. "I never thought I would have a child, but you are going to give me one. How could I be angry at an angel?"

I blushed and kissed him as he picked me up and laid us onto the bed. "I love you so much Edward." I told him and kissed his nose.

He smiled gently toward me and then at my stomach as he placed his hand onto the flat area. His eyes met mine and I was mesmerized by them. "I love you more than you will ever know. I will never leave you again, your wish is my command."

"I am yours."

"And I yours, my beautiful angel."

As we lay there deciding when to go down and tell the others, I heard a small voice whisper in the back of my head.

_You two have had so much thrown at you, and will also have more thrown at you._

_They're coming_.


	5. Safe

_**When we last left off…**_

_As we lay there deciding when to go down and tell the others, I heard a small voice whisper in the back of my head._

_You two have had so much thrown at you, and will also have more thrown at you._

_They're coming_

"Edward! Just because I'm pregnant, doesn't mean I'm disabled!" I shouted at him as he carried me down the stairs. We had decided to tell his family, and I was planning on waiting as long as I could to tell Charlie. We would not want him to have a heart attack so soon…

Edward laughed freely, "Silly Bella, of course it does. You need to save as much energy as you can, since most of it is going toward the baby." He smiled at my pouting face and kissed my forehead.

We entered the living room, where everyone was already waiting on us. They probably already knew, since we were not exactly quiet about the whole telling each other conversation. Alice quickly swiped me from Edward's arms and gave me a soft hug. "Oh, Bella! This is absolutely wonderful! I can't believe I'm going to be an aunt!"

I laughed along with her as Rosalie came up and gave me a quick, but warm, hug. "I'm glad you are able to have something I was never able to attain." My cheeks warmed and I gave her a grateful smile.

Emmett squished me in a huge bear hug, and I gasped for breath as Edward scolded him and reminded him of the baby. "Oops, sorry Bella. I guess you're even more fragile now, since you're carrying another."

I rolled my eyes, "Well it's hard to be an immortal piece of granite when a certain vampire boyfriend of yours won't change you soon enough." I heard Edward sigh, but interrupted him before he could say anything. "But I still love you." I told him and gave him a quick peck on his cheek.

Jasper walked up gracefully from his seat next to Alice, "Congratulations Bella." I blushed and nodded muttering a small thanks.

Esme came up and enveloped me into a long comforting hug. "I'm so happy for you Bella. I'm sure the baby will be beautiful." She pulled away and smiled at.

I turned to Carlisle and he put his hand on my shoulder that led into a gentle hug. "Just think, soon we'll be able to give you an ultrasound and you will be able to see what it will look like." I smiled at the thought and he let go of me.

"Hey Bella, you know, the baby isn't going to have any clothes…" Alice trailed off suggestively.

I sighed, "Alice, can we at least wait until we know what the gender is?"

Alice pouted, and I almost gave in, but she nodded and took Jasper up to her room. Edward and I went up to his room again; I actually got to walk up the stairs! Amazing right? Edward said it was only a one time thing though, until he was a vampire. It was too tiring caring me up the stairs.

We sat on his couch listening to music, me leaning into his chest and his face in my hair planting kisses on my forehead. I listened to the peaceful jazz when I wondered aloud. "Edward, what should we name the baby?"

"What do you think, Bella?" Edward whispered through my hair.

I giggled as his warm breath his my ear. "I'm not sure, how about you pick the name if it's a boy and I'll pick the name if it's a girl? And then we'll each agree or disagree to the other's decision."

He shrugged. "Sounds fair. What about Ryan?"

I frowned. "This guy name Ryan liked me in second and third grade in Phoenix. I don't really want to be reminded of him every time I hear my son's name."

Edward chuckled, "So I'm guessing you didn't like him the same way?"

"No, he called me a pygmy hippopotamus." Edward laughed loudly at this.

"Can we get back to the point?" I grumbled angrily.

"Fine." His lips touched my forehead and I smiled, no longer unhappy. "What about, Florian?"

"No."

"Lewis?"

"As in Meriwether Lewis?"

"I guess not then…Samuel?"

"It reminds me of the book My Brother Sam Is Dead."

"That's morbid. What about…Frakenstein?"

"WHAT?"

He laughed loudly and freely, "Just joking Bella."

I glared as hard as I could glare. "Fine, but if you say Dracula next I'm choosing."

He smiled crookedly and I tuned to mush, which he noticed and kissed my lips softly before continuing. "What do you think about Avery?"

"Avery," I tasted the name on my tongue and listened to the sound of it. It sounded like the name of an Angel. "It sounds, angelic. I love it."

He smiled smugly, and I playfully slapped his shoulder. "My turn."

He nodded and waited, while planting little kisses here and there every now and then. This didn't make it that easy to concentrate, but surprisingly I was able to think enough to search for a name in my head.

When I was young, I had never really liked my name. Isabella was just too formal, and well, just plain girly. Girly just was not in my nature. I preferred shorter names that rolled off the tongue quickly. Bella, for example. My daughter's name should be sweet and short.

"What about Sage?"

"As in the plant?"

I frowned. "Yes, the plant."

He looked thoughtful for a minute, tasting the name as I did his, and smiled down on me. "It sounds beautiful. Just like you." He told me and kissed me fully on the lips. The kiss began to become more heated, more passionate. We grabbed at each other, as if there were no tomorrow.

Suddenly, I was kissing air. I looked at Edward's figure, which was now on the ground, his face looking tortured, and then he screamed. I screamed with him and rushed to his side. "Edward? Edward?" My voice shook as I looked over him for the cause of his distress as he continued to scream out in agony.

"Bella, please! Please, make the fire stop!"

A gasp escaped through my lips and I screamed, "Carlisle!" My eyes held Edward's as he strained to keep them open. They shut and he cried out.

"Bella? What is going on?" Carlisle's voice rang from beside me.

"I think he is changing back Carlisle. He screamed about the fire, and it has been two weeks already." I told him, Edward's face began to sweat and I ran to get a wet towel to dab his forehead.

As I entered back into the room Carlisle was there, waiting for me. "Bella."

"Yes, Carlisle?" I answered as I wiped Edward's forehead as he yelled again. His tortured features burned into my mind and I felt in pain as I watched him scream and turn while he was being burned alive by the venom.

"Come with me to my office, we need to talk." I looked up to his face.

"But what about-"

"Esme and Jasper will take care of him. I need to speak with you though." I took one look at Edward's angelic face.

I bent down to his ear and whispered "I'll be back soon." I placed my lips on his burning cheek and left the room with Carlisle.

He sat down in his chair, and I sat across from him in a comfortable leather chair. "Bella I think it would be best if," His voice was interrupted by another one of Edward's cries. We both winced, but he gathered himself up and continued. "I think it would be best if you stayed away from Edward after he has changed."

"What?" I asked. I am having his baby! I couldn't just stay away from Edward.

"Just until we figure out if he is able to restrain himself from drinking humans. It is possible that he will be able to as before, but we cannot take those kinds of chances. It would put you in too much danger. So we will test his strength, and then once we are sure he will be able to control himself, you need to stay away from him, and the house." Carlisle spoke with authoritativeness, the same way he did when he talked to patients. He looked at me and his face turned soft, "I am truly sorry Bella, but it is for you and him. He wouldn't be able to live with himself if he hurt you. You and I both know that."

My insides turned numb and I nodded towards Carlisle. "We will come back as soon as we know it is safe."

I froze. "You mean, you are leaving? As in you are leaving Forks?" My voice broke as I spoke the last sentence.

Carlisle looked at me with sad and tortured eyes. "Yes, we can not endanger people if he is going to be like a new born. We will most likely take him to Denali, so that he may work on his control. But Bella, I swear to you, we will come back. No matter how long it takes we will."

I looked away and nodded. That was enough to get me through my time without them. Carlisle swore that they would come back. _They_ meaning all of them including Edward. It wouldn't be like last time. They would come back. Of course Edward had told me that it took years to get control. I was barely allowed to kiss him, and that was after nearly one-hundred years of practice! But he swore…

"May I say goodbye to everyone?"

"Of course." I lifted myself out of the chair, greeted by the Cullens when I opened the door.

I gave my individual goodbyes, Alice promised to come back to help with the baby if Edward hadn't attained control yet. That statement made me gasp in pain. Would the baby be bore without its father?

Lastly, but not least, I went to say goodbye to Edward. He was moaning in pain, but it didn't look as if it had lessened any. I sat by him and whispered into his ear, "Edward. Carlisle said that you have to go away for a while. Just until you get control. It won't be long, he swore that you would come back, and I will be here waiting for you. I love you, Edward Anthony Masen Cullen."

"I love you too, Isabella."

**The Ryan thing was a true story.** **For me not Bella**


	6. Fathers

_**Don't own Twilight Saga or Characters**_

_**When we last left off…**_

_Lastly, but not least, I went to say goodbye to Edward. He was moaning in pain, but it didn't look as if it had lessened any. I sat by him and whispered into his ear, "Edward. Carlisle said that you have to go away for a while. Just until you get control. It won't be long, he swore that you would come back, and I will be here waiting for you. I love you, Edward Anthony Masen Cullen."_

"_I love you too, Isabella."_

"Bella, is that you?" Charlie's voice carried to the doorway from the living room.

"Yeah, it's me dad." My voice was lifeless and I went to greet Charlie.

"Bella?" Charlie stood up from the couch and took a good look at me. "Is something wrong? Why are you back so early? You usually stay there until I call. Where's Edward?"

I grimaced at the sound of his name. "At his house. He has to start packing and helping his family pack to. They are planning on going for this really long vacation. You know, as a last big family thing before _Edward_," I let out a small shudder, but Charlie didn't seem to notice. "and I get married. They said they should hopefully be back in time for the wedding. They said they are sorry if they are not back in time for it." Alice had given me a full story to tell everyone, thank God. What would I do without her?

Charlie's face began turning various shades of purple and red, finally settling on a bright scarlet. "They just left? As if this wedding is something they can just throw around and is of no importance?"

"No, Dad. Please understand." I pleaded. It was bad enough that he was leaving. I didn't need Charlie already exploding, _before_ I told him about the baby. "They just all need time together. Besides, it will give you and me time together before I leave after I get married."

Charlie's face gradually turned into a normal fleshy color as he calmed down. "Fine, but he will come back, won't he?"

I quickly nodded, so that I wouldn't have time to doubt it myself.

Charlie completely relaxed and went back to watching the game while I crept up my stairs, I would tell him about the baby tomorrow. One explosion a day is enough for him.

It turns out that I didn't tell Charlie until a month later. I kept putting off when I would tell him, making up all these insane excuses in my mind for not telling him. After a month, he had calmed down about the whole leaving thing, so I ran out of excuses.

I made an especially wonderful dinner, much like the one Es-. No, I wouldn't think about him at all. Yet.

"Hey Bells." Charlie called as he entered through the front door. "Wow, something smells good." Once he reached the kitchen he looked surprised, this expression quickly to suspicious. " What is all this for?"

I sighed, no turning back now. I put on a cheerful face and motioned for him to sit. "Oh nothing, Dad. Just wanted to make something special for you."

He gave me a queer look, but sat down and started eating.

I was too nervous to eat, so I just picked at my food as Charlie devoured his and ate seconds. Once he was full and happy he patted his belly. "That was an especially good dinner Bells."

I fidgeted in my seat knowing it was now or never. "I'm glad you enjoyed it, Dad. Uh, I kind of have something I need to talk to you about…"

"Aha!" He shouted triumphantly. "I knew there was something behind all this! Okay, now spill it Bella, what is it?"

I pulled at a loose strand of hair and avoided his eyes. "Well, you see, Dad, before Edward left, we did some things…" I had to calm myself down as the memories threatened to come back. Not now, Charlie's emotions are enough. "And, I figured out I'm uh…"

"Isabella, are you saying you're pregnant?" Charlie asked, in a strange calm. His piercing brown eyes burning my flesh.

"Um, sort of…"

"What do you mean 'sort of'?"

"Yes."

"Okay then." He nodded and began to get out of his chair.

"Excuse me?" Did I hear right? Did he just say, 'Okay'? No purple or red faces? No explosion? "You're not angry?"

"No, because I know you're getting abortion." Charlie stated calmly.

"Um, Dad, I don't think you understand. I'm having this baby."

"No Isabella Marie Swan." Uh oh, here comes the yelling and the many colors of the face. "You are NOT having this baby. You are too young to be having a _child_ a living _human being_. Do you realize what this means? You are going to have to take care of it, feed it, pay for it, live with it. It will be _your_ full responsibility. I will not help you with this, and does Edward know? Is he okay with this? Since it is his fault!" I missed the calm.

"Yes! Edward was _ecstatic_ when I told him. I've never seen him happier! I realize the responsibility that comes with this child, and so does Edward. We are both thrilled at having this child. Why can't you just be happy for us?"

"Because, Isabella, this means you are not going to have time for college! This baby will ruin your life! You don't understand that a baby means-"

"I do understand, Charlie! I want this baby! Would you have gotten rid of me, you and Renée had me at such a young age! Why am I any different from you?"

"Because, Bella, you have a whole life ahead of you. This baby will ruin it."

"No it won't Dad, it will create it and be a part of it." He stared at me for a long while, and finally sighed.

"Okay, Bella. Just don't come running to me for help when Edward will not help with the baby."

"Charl-"

"No, Bella. I'm going to bed. Goodnight." My father turned away from me and went up the stairs. Leaving me alone in this world.

Oh, Edward, where are you?


	7. Inside

_**You guys are going to absolutely hate me for this chapter. It was already planned when I started this story, don't worry, I hate this chapter and myself for writing it. **_

_**Don't own Twilight Saga or Characters.**_

_**When we last left off…**_

"_Charl-"_

"_No, Bella. I'm going to bed. Goodnight." My father turned away from me and went up the stairs. Leaving me alone in this world. _

_Oh, Edward, where are you?_

**Three Months Later**

As I grew larger and larger, Charlie and I grew farther and farther apart. Everyone was now able to tell that I was pregnant. I absolutely _hated_ all the attention it brought when I went out. Charlie just gave me, _I told you so_, glances. We occasionally made small talk, but besides that we never talked to each other.

_He_ had been gone for four months now. With him gone, I had no one to turn to, no one to be with, and no one to hold me as I cried at night. I was alone.

I had told Renée about the baby. That didn't go over well. Maybe a little better than with Charlie, because she understood my situation as a mother and promised she would support me in the end. She asked if I would go to Jacksonville to come live with her and Phil after I told her about Charlie, but I had to say no. I had to wait for him. Renée understood and told me if anything happened, just to come down to see her.

Today I had gone to the store to get groceries and various items that we needed while Charlie was busy at work. I held the bag with the inside of my left arm while I tried to open the door with the key. A milk carton flew out of the bag to my left and I groaned as it spilled all over the porch. I placed the other bags down and looked to pick it up, my eyes glancing over the forest.

I suddenly froze.

A lone figure stood at the edge of the trees, maybe four or five feet inside the shadows of the trees. The figure was only a dark shadow, except for his hair which shone in the setting sun.

He was back. But he something was different about him, I couldn't place the change for he was too far away. I dropped all the groceries I had tried to pick up and ran over to him. "Edward!" I cried as I wrapped my small arms around his torso.

But he did not wrap his arms around me.

"Edward?" I looked up at his glorious face. It was hard as stone, his beautiful face expressionless as he stared down on me. I had imagined this a million times, as I stayed up late at night wondering when he would return. He would wrap his strong arms around me and tell me he loved me, kiss me, comment of how big my stomach was getting, and then carry me back to his house as we embraced for eternity. I basically imagined billions of times except in different places and different orders.

This was the exact opposite of what I had always thought. His face was cold and hard, and his eyes were-

Red, blood red.

"Edward? Please talk to me, Edward. What is wrong with your eyes?" I pleaded holding him tighter to me. He placed his arms in between my body and his and pushed me away, and not gently either. I fell to the ground when an 'Oomphf'. Tears sprang to my eyes as I stood back up, not bothering to wipe the dirt off of my body. "Edward?"

"Isabella," His voice was stiff and hard, just like his expression. "I came back to fulfill a promise that was not even mine. Not because I wished to come here."

His words struck my heart like a whip. "What are you talking about, Edward?"

He rolled his eyes and his expression became hostile. "Isabella, are you an idiot? I don't love you! I _hate _you! How could I like a stupid, filthy, clumsy, imperfect human?"

I shook my head, my tears spilling out. "Edward, you said-"

"I know what I said before, but I had some time to think this over while I was gone. You have caused me nothing but pain, and you are only nuisance to me and my family."

I let out a broken sob, as my stomach clenched in pain. My throat closed and tears fell onto my shirt staining the fabric. "Please Edward, what about the baby-"

"What?" His expression was genuinely surprised and confused.

"The baby, our baby…" I said, hoping to keep him here with me.

"Oh yes, _your_ baby. If I didn't want you, why would I want some filthy scum that comes from you? You are filthy scum, I hate you, never look for me again, or talk to me again or my family. Do you understand? Or are you too stupid?"

I shook my head, loud sobs emanating from my chest. "No," I whispered. "I understand." I wrapped my arms around my chest, a useless effort to keep together. The world was a blur, nothing mattered, I was hated by my one true love, and there was nothing I could do about it.

"Good. Goodbye, filthy human." And with that he was gone, leaving me truly broken and alone in this world. He hadn't even asked for me to stay safe! I knew he meant it this time, why else would he call me scum? Why else would he hate me?

I collapsed on the edge of the forest, sobs tearing out from my chest, each one more painful than the last, but they wouldn't stop. They couldn't stop. He wouldn't come back. He hated me.

He hated me.

He hated me.

But I had to go on.

If not for him, if not for me, if not for Charlie, then for the one I was carrying inside of me.


	8. Sting

_**I don't own anything, duh.**_

_**When we last left off…**_

_He hated me._

_But I had to go on. _

_If not for him, if not for me, if not for Charlie, than for the one I was carrying inside of me. _

**Three Months Later**

Time is of the essence. Whoever thought of that was an idiot. Right now, all I want is for time to speed up or stop completely. Having it drag on like this day by day is torture, going through each day is even worse.

My life's purpose is to keep on living for this baby. Whoever is inside me will keep me from being alone, will give me someone I can hold and tell I love. Even if I will never hear that from the person I wish most to hear it from. I would not eat if I did not have the baby to feed, I would not sleep if I didn't have the baby to provide energy for, and I would not live if I did not have the baby to live for.

Charlie decided to take back what he said, after he saw what a mess I was. He always tells me that all this stress cannot be good for the baby, but I do not know what to do. It is not like I have a switch that can change my emotions from numb to happy and carefree in a moment. He is helping me with the baby now. I could never be more grateful because sometimes I am sucked into the memories and I can only lay there screaming as my own mind tortures itself.

_His arms wrapped around me, 'I love you Bella.' _

_The night we gave ourselves to each other replayed in my mind over and over. I screamed in pain as the fire consumed my body, if I had gone through the change I would say this was one hundred times worst. My broken heart cracked more over and over as the memories played over and over. _

"_Bella, please honey. It will be okay." I realized I was sobbing into my father's chest. Even if it wasn't the chest I longed for, it gave me the comfort and some of the love I needed._

"_No," I sobbed. "He hates me. He hates me…"_

Would these horrible memories ever stop tormenting me? Would my mind torture itself until I finally cracked? I would not be able to handle it if Charlie sent me back to Phoenix. He would only be doing it to help me because I know it hurts him too seeing me this way, so I would not be holding it against him if he did send me away. But I know it would only make it worse because I would not be able to handle it if I was separated from everyone I had left, or from the few memories I had of him. Even though it killed me to watch every scene, I was terrified to forget. So I tried to look as if I was healing. A deep bruise that had damaged the tissue but showed no sign of being hurt on the outside. A bruise that never seemed to stop aching.

**Birth**

"It's a boy, congratulations Miss." An elderly nurse told me as she took away the squirming thing that she held in her arms. I closed my eyes and wiped my forehead with my hand that was not being held in Charlie's in an attempt to rid of the sweat that had gathered in my eyebrows. A small smile danced on my lips and I laughed softly in relief.

"I think another one is coming!" The doctor announced and they each of them readied for the next thing to come out of my stomach.

"Bella, you're going to have to push a little more, alright honey?" I nodded towards Charlie, who squeezed my hand comfortingly. I squeezed hard and gave one last agonizing cry and loud miraculous cries filled the room. My cries reminded me of Star Wars, strangely. When Padme gave birth to her twins she died right after. What would it be like if my fate matched hers? Would I be grateful for a release, or guilty for leaving everyone else alone? I was already so much like her, so much it was kind of strange. No, I would fight against that, I would not end up like her.

"My baby, my babies…I didn't even get to see them." I cried, my tears spilling over the rims.

"You will, Bells. They just have to help one of them." Charlie assured me calmly. I nodded back, relief filling me a little.

"Excuse me, Miss?" I looked at a fairly young looking nurse, holding a small bundle in her arms. "You had two babies; the one you are currently holding is the male. The other one, which is a girl, is being cleaned up and will be out in a while. Please choose the name for your son."

I thanked her with a smiled as she handed me my small blue bundle. His eyes stared at me with interest, and I felt as though I could weep. Whether for joy or for sorrow, I was uncertain. Those orbs were the exact same shade of green as _his_. He had no hair, only a bit of soft peach fuzz that was unrecognizable as any color. The small human being smiled up at me and I smiled in return, caressing his soft cheek as he stared up at me in amazement.

"Miss? The name?"

I nodded to her. "Avery. Avery Anthony Cullen."

"What color hair do you suppose he will have?" I wondered out loud to particularly no one.

My question went unanswered as doctors filled the room, but I didn't look at them. My eyes were transfixed on Avery's face. "Miss Swan? If you let me take your son, I will be able to give you your daughter." I lifted my head to the object the nurse held. We traded babies and I looked at my daughter.

She was definitely beautiful, her facial structure very similar to his with a straight nose and high cheekbones. Even her eyes were the same color as his. She has no hair, as do most babies, but I knew that with time she would have a whole head full of bronze locks.

Two grass green eyes looked into mine in wonder and I smiled as I brushed my finger against her nose making her sneeze which caused Charlie and me to laugh.

Her form began to shake after that sneeze as coughs moved her whole body. She seemed to struggle for breaths as her skin turned a light shade of blue.

"Nurse?" I asked alarmed. She looked up from the documents she had begun to fill out and looked at me in a bored manner that soon became startle as she took in the shaking infant's sight.

"Oh my God, Doctor! We have a problem!" She called and in no time the same doctor who helped me deliver the babies came in and grabbed my daughter out of my arms.

"She's losing oxygen quickly, get the oxygen bag and prepare for cpr!" They all rushed out of the room and into another.

"Don't worry, Miss Swan, the chances that the girl will survive are very high. The doctors know what they are doing. Know while we wait, would you like to tell me the name of your daughter?" The nurse picked up her documents and waited for my answer with her pen in position to scribble it down.

I stared blankly at her, still in shock from the sudden emergency. The feeling was such as when you get a paper cut. You see the blood, but you do not feel the sting and when you do you want to do anything to stop it. The sting had not come yet and I was still watching it bleed. "Yes, Sage Elizabeth Cullen."

The room was silent except for the smooth scratching of the pen as it scared the paper. Charlie squeezed my hand but I still only saw the blood no sting, yet.

"When do you think they'll bring her back?" Even though my voice was a soft whisper it broke the glass of silence like a hammer.

The nurse shrugged as she continued to mark down information and Charlie looked as if he was about to demand a better answer than that but he was interrupted by the swing of the door. The doctor had returned. He was a very strange doctor, in my opinion. His skin was as pale as a vampire's, and I would have guessed he was one if he had not had such normal pale blue eyes and mousy brown hair. His features were soft and average with a nose that was a little too big to be considered beautiful.

He walked up to me, his face was composed to look sad but his eyes shone with pride and admiration for himself. "I am very sorry to say, Miss Swan, but we were not able to give your daughter enough oxygen to survive."

My ears felt as if they were stuffed with cotton and my vision swam. A baby's cry was heard somewhere far in the distance along with rushed commands. Figures moved quickly around me, making my head dizzy. I closed my eyes, wishing to remove myself from the world, with its pain and death. My mind left my head and I fell into a deep sleep, one that I had longed for.

**Hey guys, long time no see. SORRY!!! But we all get distracted, right???? **

**Bella's not dead so don't fret. Things will get better, not the next chapter, but the **_**next next**_** chapter. Well, they might not get better, but you will find out what the hell is wrong with me, why I am so stupid, and why I am so screwed up. This is definitely not a Jacob and Bella story, so don't worry about that either. Sorry again for the wait, I hope to update sometime at the end of this week because I'm not going to be here at all next week during spring break, I'm going on a long trip. But I also have a lot of stuff this week for school, so hopefully I'll write the chapter, give it to my beta, correct it, and then update by Friday! Yay! Hopefully :S**

**Mia**


	9. Taxi

_**Nothing owned here, sorry. **_

_**When we last left off…**_

_He walked up to me, his face was composed to look sad but his eyes shone with pride and admiration for himself. "I am very sorry to say, Miss Swan, but we were not able to give your daughter enough oxygen to survive."_

_My ears felt as if they were stuffed with cotton and my vision swam. A baby's cry was heard somewhere far in the distance along with rushed commands. Figures moved quickly around me, making my head dizzy. I closed my eyes, wishing to remove myself from the world, with its pain and death. My mind left my head and I fell into a deep sleep, one that I had longed for._

**2 Years Later**

"Please Bella, I insist. You've been taking care of this baby almost 24/7. You need a break take the money and have a good time. I promise that Avery will be fine for four days without you." Charlie's eyes bore into mine and I sighed stubbornly. He has been trying to get me out of the house but I had kept telling him that I had a responsibility to take care off Avery.

Now he was pushing money and a plane ticket at me while directing me to the door while Avery had clamped his body around my leg.

"Fine, but only four days and I'll be calling every day." I shouted from the door frame as Charlie unhooked Avery from my leg.

"No no, don't do that. Just enjoy yourself. You need to. Now say goodbye to mommy Ave." My baby's eye wondered to me and showed confusion.

"Where she going?" His high toddler voice asked in an ungrammatically correct sentence, turning his head from me to Charlie.

"I'll just be gone for a while, okay Ave? Now be good with Grandpa and go to school with no fuss. Do you think you can be a good boy for mommy?" Avery's eyes sparkled with a few tears but they soon disappeared as he nodded eagerly. He was never one to cry and always a mommy's boy. "Okay, bye." I gave both of the men a peck on the cheek and turned around to my truck with a single duffel bag on my shoulder. Still as old and loud as ever, it roared to life as it polluted the ozone on the way to the airport.

After going through customs and all that annoying but safe security, I sat down in a torn black seat at terminal 9A awaiting a plane that would depart from Port Angeles, Washington and eventually end up at Portland, Oregon.

Without causing any harm to myself or to those around me, I landed in the almost equally rainy city of Portland. Maybe my life was changing for the better; I had not tripped once or been in a life threatening incident ever since I had given birth.

Why did I not knock on wood then?

I grabbed my duffel bag with the feeling of being watched. I shivered but shook it off as nothing but that Charlie had been right and that I needed this vacation. I passed through the sliding doors and waved at taxi from under a landing to take me to the hotel that Charlie had arranged for me to stay at. The driver stopped right in front of me and waved for me to come in. I noticed an older woman looking dejected as she saw me heading for the taxi.

I changed direction and headed for the woman, "Excuse me, Miss, but you can have this taxi. I'll wait for the next." I told her with a smile.

She grinned back and glanced at the taxi. Her face turned fearful and I looked back at the taxi to see what had frightened her but the driver was just playing drumming his fingers on the steering wheel to a beat I could not hear.

"No, you take it. I don't want nothing to do with him." Her head shook frantically while she backed away further as if the driver was going to run out of his car and kill her.

I tilted my head toward the driver, he seemed nice enough to me. I shrugged while muttering, "Suit yourself." Readjusting my shoulder strap I headed toward the cab. The driver came out of the car and opened the door to the backseat for me with a gentle smile on his face. I smiled nervously back and threw my bag into the car and then sliding after it. The driver was back in seconds with his hands on the steering wheel as he drove out of the parking lot of the airport.

"Where to Miss?" He asked adjusting his mirror so that he could see me and vice versa. From the mirror I could see his light brown eyes and wrinkled cheeks. He had parentheses around his mouth and crinkles on the corners of his eyes. His hair was black with grey and white hairs sprinkled in, but even with the white hairs it still contrasted greatly with his white skin. He could not have been more than 40, at least 37.

"Umm, I'm not sure. It should say here." I handed him a slip of paper my father had given me that read the name and address of the hotel. He took it in his hand and read the location while managing to keep the car from swerving or moving at all while his eyes diverted from the road. He nodded to himself remembering the address and handing the slip back to me.

"So is this your first time here in Oregon?" I nodded, knowing he could see me in his mirror but still answered aloud.

"Yes, my father is making me come here as a vacation." I looked outside the window and noticed we were no longer heading toward the buildings but rather farther from them towards the forest and the sea of trees. I knew there was not a hotel there.

"Um, sir? Where are we going?" My voice shook and I looked back into the mirror. His mouth had twisted into a devious smile that the villains always had in the cartoons.

"Don't worry about that, Isabella. You have much bigger problems at the moment." I heard his chuckle and felt the car turn suddenly into the swarm of trees. Remarkably we missed all of them as my maniac taxi driver drove deeper into woods. Why didn't these taxis ever have any freaking seatbelts?? My nails dug into the cheap leather covering and I closed my eyes as I held down the pretzels I had eaten on the plane.

The car came to such an abrupt stop that I flew forward, knocking my head on the back off the passenger's seat. Sure it was cushiony but I still received a major headache from the impact.

Black spots appeared out of no where and I felt my body being shoved out of the cab. Two iron arms held me as I tried to struggle free, my headache stopping any real effort. As if any effort I put into struggling would help me escape.

"I would love to suck you dry, but my master would not be pleased in the least." A whisper in my ear told me and a fire erupted in my neck.

**Three Days Later**

My body was stiff and my movement's were slow. My arms were so heavy, I felt like I was doing serious weight lifting when I sat up.

I hate fate. I really do. When I want to be a vampire, I cannot become one because of a certain someone not wanting to damn me to hell. When I cannot become a vampire because I have a child to take care of, I do! What the frick? Everyone is right, irony is a bitch.

I hesitantly stood up and realized I had been lying next to the taxi. Reaching for my duffle bag, I decided to call Charlie. How would I get out of this? I still had a child to raise, how was I supposed to do that when I wanted to drink its blood every second? I unzipped a side pocket and took out a cell-phone Charlie had bought for me a year ago. Dialing the number I waited.

A click signaled that the receiving end had answered. "Hello?"

"Hey, Dad?" I asked hesitantly, unsure of whether my father would notice a big difference in my voice or not.

"Oh, hey Bells! Don't worry, everything is under control. Ave was a little upset the first two days, but he's a little better today. You're coming home tomorrow, right?"

I bit my lip, "Uh, dad? Is it ok if I went on a vacation a little while longer?" My mind raced thinking of a solution if he said no.

"How much longer?"

"Uh, you know, a couple years. I was thinking about going to school for a couple of years and then come back. To get a job to help support Avery and you…"

"Of course Bella! I'm so glad you finally agreed with me. I'll take care of Avery are you going to come back to get some of your stuff?"

"No, I'll just go from here. Tell Avery I love him. Bye dad, love you." My words came out almost too fast as I said the last words. I hung up and turned the phone off, not wanting Charlie to question me on anything else. I hope he would not notice that I did not have a change in education and that I did have a major change in appearance when I got back. I will just solve that when I get to that problem. First I needed to get a handle on my thirst.

A scent nearby or maybe a hundred miles I could not tell with these new senses, caught my attention. My mind reeled with ways to get to the scent and I hoped it was not a human and some bear in the woods. I ripped open the bag, almost popping off the zipper, and looked for some clothes that might be suitable for hunting. An envelope was placed on the stack of my clothes. I picked it up, crossing my legs to get into a more comfortable reading-a-letter-position on the ground. My finger swiftly cut open the wax seal marked with a 'V' and I delicately pulled out the paper, already knowing I was unnaturally strong. The letter read as follows:

_Dear Isabella,_

_Well, I trust you have found our letter. My guard told me that he would place it in a place you would no doubt find it. You may have realized that you are now a vampire, as a result of that guard. We would normally have you stay at the castle with us, but that is not an option at the moment. Having your presence there would complicate things that should go uncomplicated. So we will be calling for you in fourteen years, my guard told us that you have a few things to attend to, so this should be enough time for both of us to finish these things. _

_Until Then Isabella,_

_The Volturi_

**What the???? What does this mean? Anyone? Plenty of hints in the letter to what's happening…But if you don't know, that's ok (: **

**Mia**


	10. Back

**Let's see…If I owned Twilight, Jacob would only tell Bella the legends and then he would magically disappear. Poof! If you think this is what actually happened in the book, check the cover on it and see if it says 'Twilight'/ 'New Moon'/ 'Eclipse'**

_**When we last left off…**_

_Dear Isabella,_

_Well, I trust you have found our letter. My guard told me that he would place it where you would no doubt find it. You may have realized that you are now a vampire, as a result of that guard. We would normally have you stay at the castle with us, but that is not an option at the moment. Having your presence there would complicate things that should go uncomplicated. So we will be calling for you in fourteen years. My guard told us that you have a few things to attend to, so this should be enough time for both of us to finish these things. _

_Until Then Isabella,_

_The Volturi_

**Now**

Six years have passed since I made that phone call. Eight years has passed since I had Avery, who had spent too much of his life without a mother. Eight years and seven months have passed since I was left alone.

The first year of my vampire life was spent in seclusion. The only companions I had were the inmates of the forest, whom I drank from almost every week, sometimes more. The Cullens had been right, the thirst overcame me and I was not able to think straight the first few months. The only thing I knew was that I needed blood and I needed it now. I remembered when Avery was a newborn, whenever he needed something he always had to have it right then. Whether it be milk, a blanket, rest, or all of the above he had to have it then. That is how I felt; I could see why new vampires were named 'newborns'. If I had been in an area with people there is no doubt that I would have drank from most, if not all, of them.

If not for my cell phone, I would have never been able to tell the dates or the months. I tried to use it as sparingly as possible, but when it finally died, I used my Ipod. After that followed my cell phone into the afterlife, I counted the days and months in my head from the setting and rising of the sun.

Life for that first year was absolute torture. There was nothing to do except run around the forest and drink from animals, but after a while that gets boring. I tried to make sure I did not run too far from where the car had been because I did not know how close to civilization I was.

When the year ended, I decided to test my strength. For the first few months, I would only walk around the city of Portland. I started with the suburbs, where there were not that many people around, but I could at least get used to the smell of them. As I moved inward, my throat burned in protest and I nearly gave in to its requests when a boy about my age came up to me and asked to have lunch or dinner sometime. His breath fanned across my face and I knew his heart rate by counting the beats per minute by his pulsing jugular. When I realized that I had been staring at his neck, I quickly shook my head and ran away toward the forest, at human speed of course. I could feel his eyes piercing through my skin, but I was losing control and ran towards safety and relief.

After two more weeks in seclusion, I returned and started my way towards downtown. Once I adapted to the smell in the middle of heavily crowded streets and parks, I began working my way inside. Naturally I started in the libraries; at first I started there because there were rows of books with not as many people in them as there would be in a mall. Soon my reason for going was to read. It had been a year since I had actually read anything of interest and I knew again why I loved to read so much.

Inside a mall, on a Saturday afternoon from the moment it opened, to the hour it closed, I still had to hold my breath at times, but generally, if I had hunted well the night before I could go for a week without feeling the total urge to rip someone's throat out. So, I decided to try out college. What better way to try out my control than in an auditorium filled with vessels pulsing with sweet nectar for two to three hours at a time was there? There was also the bonus that I would not be completely lying to Charlie.

With the money in my bank account put in by my father and many forms to fill out, I was attending Portland University. Surprisingly, staying in class without going on a killing spree was much easier than being in a mall on a Saturday afternoon. Especially in the food court.

That is how I ended up back here. After six years, I was back at Charlie's door with a college degree, contacts, and an age of 27, except I still looked the same as I had when I left. I was also a vampire, but let us hope that he did not notice that factor.

I knocked hesitantly on the door my white knuckles showing no red after the impact. Shifting my weight from one foot to the next, I waited.

"I'll get it, grandpa." A young voice called out. That had to be Avery; there could be no doubt about it.

Small footsteps jogged towards the front door and it swung open. A young tall boy, at the age of 8, stared at me with painstakingly familiar emerald orbs. His face structure was more like mine, with the upturned nose and large eyes but you would have to be blind not to know he was his child, his eyes, hair, and height were all too similar.

At the moment, his head was slightly tilted and his eyebrows scrunched together in confusion. "Miss? Who are you?"

I felt a pang in my heart and almost lost it, but I reached forward anyway to touch his head. He flinched away the moment I touched his head, but a moment was all I needed. My vampire fast thoughts were able to shift through his memories and uncover what he had forgotten. That was my power, I can make you forget or remember all with a simple touch of my hand.

"Mom?" His eyes widened and I smiled gently without bearing any teeth.

"Yes, I'm back."

"Who is it Ave?" A man with less and greyer hair than I remembered came from behind my son. His eyes had become slightly foggy and his face held more wrinkles. I would undoubtedly have those wrinkles if I had stayed to raise my child. "Bella?"

"Hey dad," I encased him in a hug by squeezing him gently.

"Wow Bella, you don't look a day older than when you left. Are you alright? You look too pale, and you're skinnier." Charlie's eyes searched my body noticing the changes his daughter's body had made. Surprised, I did not realize how observant he was, especially after how long he had not seen me.

"Really? Well, you know dad, it isn't as if I went to Florida. I went to Oregon, which receives more or less the same amount of sun this town does." I laughed hoping he bought the lie.

He laughed along but the tension was growing with my lie and we soon fell silent.

Charlie cleared his throat. "Well, Bells why don't we go inside and you can tell us what you've been up to?"

"Sure, but I'm much more interested in what you guys have been doing. I've only gone to school, nothing big there." He nodded as I entered telling him this and Avery closed the door.

We moved to the living room and I sat down onto the couch while Charlie sat in his chair, leaving Avery to apprehensively sit down next to me. I do not blame him for this, I was a vampire and humans tended to stick to their instincts and shy away from me, but having my son being afraid to sit next to me still hurt.

"Well Bella, Ave is doing great in school, much like you he is. He's a very good kid, doesn't throw many tantrums although he does have trouble watching his temper at times." Charlie sent a stern glance towards Avery and he shifted uncomfortably under my father's glare. "But other than that he's very caring. Sometimes he reminds me of you when you were his age, others times he has an entirely different personality.

"Tell your mother about your hobbies and interests while I go make us some lunch.

"Bella, you must be hungry, would you like anything?"

I shook my head, "No thank you, I had lunch earlier before the plane took off." He nodded and went into the kitchen to prepare their lunch.

"You shouldn't have let him into the kitchen." Avery told me.

"I know, hopefully he is only making sandwiches. What do you usually eat for dinner?"

He shrugged. "Usually grandpa's friend Jacob comes over and makes us dinner, but when he can't grandpa orders out. The pizza place is always better than his cooking." I grinned; it was so easy talking to him. I had expected him to hate me and never want to talk to me for abandoning him when he had only been two.

"Wait, Jacob?" Great. Just great, a werewolf was coming over for dinner at a vampire's house. "Will he becoming over tonight?"

Avery nodded, "Probably, grandpa says that he was your friend to, before you went away to college. He's really cool to hang out with, but I don't think he likes me much." His shoulders slumped and he blew a lock of hair out of his eye. "But grandpa says that it's nothing personal. I like to race with him. I'm getting really good, and last time we raced I almost beat him."

Knowing that Jacob was most likely holding back I smiled supportively anyway, "Really? You like running?"

He nodded his head tousling his hair even more, "I love it."

"Do you hate me? For not being around? For leaving you without a mother and a father?" The questions were very random on my part, but I had to know. I scolded myself for placing so much pressure on Avery, but they kept nagging on my brain, where some parts agreed others disagreed making my mind declare civil war on itself.

Avery looked shocked at the sudden changed of subject. I watched as he debated with himself, wondering if he should tell me the truth or lie to make me feel better about not being here as he grew up. "Well, sometimes it was hard. Other kids at school always had both parents to look after them, to help them with their homework, to come on career day, to pick them up, but I only had grandpa. He's really great, but most of the time I wished that I had both parents too. That you would come back sooner. Grandpa said you would come back in four years, maybe even five, but when you didn't come back after five I got worried. I was afraid that you didn't want me, but when I told this to grandpa he'd tell me I was ridiculous, that of course you loved me and that you were just taking a little longer than expected. He never doubted you'd come back, though. So I trusted him. I'm happy I did, because he was right." His face held little emotion, but his eyes had depths of sadness that I had never seen in any eight year-old before.

"I am sorry I did not come back sooner. I would have, but I had to stay away. When you are older I will tell you why. I never meant to be gone for so long. It was only supposed to be four days, but then something happened and I had to wait. I never thought that I wouldn't return home. Never did I think that I did not love you or that I did not want to come back. Trust me, I always loved you, never doubt those words." He grinned as wide as an eight year-old could and crashed into my arms. I never knew how much I loved holding my creation until then.

I savored the moment until there was a crash in the kitchen followed by the aroma of burning toast, "Hey Bells? Can you come here a second and help with lunch?"

"Kay, hop up baby. I need to go make sure grandpa hasn't burned down the kitchen." Avery jumped out of my arms and followed me as I entered the kitchen.

It turns out that Charlie had been trying to make Avery's favorite, grilled cheese, until he accidentally flipped the bread over with the cheese on that side. I scrubbed the pan free of burnt cheese and started the process over.

"Hey, dad, Avery told me that Jacob was most likely coming over tonight."

"Yup, he's correct. I thought you and him would like to have a little reunion to celebrate you returning from college." He told me from his place at the table reading the newspaper.

"Um, can we perhaps uninvited him? I was thinking of taking Avery and looking for a house to move in with Avery."

"Can't you do that tomorrow? I'm sure that Jake would like to see you after you have been gone for so long."

"No, I had planned on finding a job to pay for the house tomorrow." Wow, looks like I have my afternoon and tomorrow already planned out. "I could visit him in La Push tomorrow to while I'm looking, or we could meet up and have lunch together."

Charlie sighed and I could tell he wanted to roll her eyes but resisted. "Fine, Bells."

**I have the next two chapters done and I am working on the 13th chapter. I just had all this inspiration this week, it was weird. I won't be able to post them because my beta hasn't corrected them yet (cause i kept giving them the wrong ones) and I can't get them from her tomorrow because they're going to be gone in science fair. but they will be up soon (:**

**Mia**


	11. Run

Jeez, I DON'T OWN ANYTHING OKAY

**Jeez, I DON'T OWN ANYTHING OKAY?? Just get off my back! Gosh! (: **

_**Previously…**_

"_Can't you do that tomorrow? I'm sure that Jake would like to see you after you have been gone for so long."_

"_No, I had planned on finding a job to pay for the house tomorrow." Wow, looks like I have my afternoon and tomorrow already planned out. "I could visit him in La Push tomorrow to while I'm looking, or we could meet up and have lunch together." _

_Charlie sighed and I could tell he wanted to roll her eyes but resisted. "Fine, Bells." _

**Now**

He really hadn't changed since I had last seen him; he had once told me that even he did not age.

"Jacob." I nodded in his direction.

"Isabella." His eyes watched me carefully and it hurt to know that he no longer trusted me. "When you told me over the phone that you had changed I could only guess that you had gotten fatter or something." I held back a smirk, knowing he was serious. "Not into an entirely different creature."

I shuddered at the vehemence in his voice, "Jake-"

He shook his head stiffly and crossed his arms, looking as foreign to me as he ever has. "I'm only here to discuss with you the treaty. The treaty applies to you as well, no biting any humans, no killing any humans, no hurting any humans, no revealing yourself to any humans, no crossing the borderline, no hurting the pack, and feeding on only animals."

I nodded, "Of course." I agreed relaying the same stiffness, dropping all friendliness as he had. At this moment, I fully understood how vampires and werewolves couldn't mingle. Jacob had been right.

A splash of sadness was painted into his eyes as he spoke the next words, "As for Avery, tell him that I will not be able to visit anymore. It is up to you whether to tell him the exact reasons for that."

"I will when he is older, my son is no longer any concern of yours-" I hesitated as I said the next words. "-and neither am I."

"You're wrong, you are always my concern, Bella," but by the time he had spoken the words I was already running with only the wind as his messenger and my source of hearing.

Fortunately, Jacob and I had reached a compromise regarding Avery. Jacob would pick him up after school and they would have their 'man time' as I did errands and finished work. Afterward, I would come home and Avery would be doing his homework on the kitchen table as Jacob drove away once he caught sight of me.

_**Seconds to minutes, minutes to hours, hours to days, days to weeks, weeks to months, months to years**_

Jacob Black and Avery Anthony Cullen sat on a park bench. Jacob sat still and watched as Avery regained his breath from their recent run. He would have never been born if she had chosen him. Was that a good thing? Avery was a cool kid, but there were those times when he reminded him too much of what he had lost to the bloodsucker.

"Jake?"

"Yeah, Ave?"

"Why do you and my mom hate each other?" Jacob was taken aback by the nine year-old's question. Avery never seemed to have a problem with the distance between him and Bella. "I know you guys do, because you never talk to each other and when you do sometimes you always talk so angrily. As if you guys will break out in a fight any moment."

Jacob sighed, "We don't hate each other."

"Yes you do."

"No, we don't." Jacob said, not harshly. "It's complicated, besides your mom would probably rather that you found out from her."

"But Jake," Avery said pleading with his green eyes with his lip sticking partly out. "She never tells me anything, even though I've asked her a bajillion times." With his pouty lip, he crossed his arms and slouched his back against the bench.

Whether Jacob realized it or not, Avery had the same power to control and manipulate his decisions as his mother before him did. She had forced the truth from him by flirting, and now her son was forcing the truth from him by pouting.

"Do you like scary stories, kid?"

_**Seconds to minutes, minutes to hours**_

"Jacob Black." I stared harshly up at him. Some of the effect was lost, but I think he got the picture.

"Yes, Isabella Swan?"

"You told him?"

"Why yes, I did." Thunder rolled in the distance and rain spattered across the window panes. I was painfully reminded of baseball.

"He's nine! You can't tell a nine year-old these things!" I almost screamed at him. It was past eleven o'clock and I had already sent Avery to bed. He had been giving me strange looks the whole time they had been back and, strangely enough, Jacob had decided to stay to talk after Avery went to bed.

"In my perspective, it is much easier telling him now. He's younger than you and he still believes that there may be magical things in the world. Now if we had told Charlie, for instance, he may have sent us both to the insane asylum. But, as you said, Avery is nine, so it does not make all that much of a difference to him."

I puffed out an angry breath before continuing. "You're right, it might not make as much as a different as if we had told Charlie, but you forget. You are just telling him that vampires and werewolves exist, but you are also telling him that his mother and his best friend are these mystical beings. Did you make him swear to not to tell anyone?"

"Pinky swore."

I rolled my eyes in their sockets, "Good enough for a nine year-old I guess."

_**Seconds to minutes**_

The clanking of Jacob's car rattled in the driveway and into the street as he drove away back to La Push. I closed the window to Avery's room so that he would not be bothered by any other noises coming from the street.

I turned around to check on my son under the covers of his bed, but he was gone. His dresser and closet had several clothes missing along with his backpack. Scanning the room quickly and listening for any sign of him in the house. I ran around the entire house searching for him. He was no where to be seen, heard, or smelt except for the areas he had previously been.

Panic flooded through my nervous system. I swung open the window of his room, nearly shattering the glass in the process, and screamed, "Avery!" Rain spattered my face and rolled down my cheeks like tears. "How ironic," I thought, but only for a moment, then returned to my panic frightened state.

He could not have gone far. If he left from the window he must have left a scent as he went outside. I wiped a rain streak from under my eye and returned my gaze to the outside window mournfully realization setting in. I do not know if it was just luck on his part or he planned it out carefully, but I would never be able to find his scent with it pouring like this unless he was three feet away.

I pulled my cell-phone out of my jeans pocket and dialed a number. The dial tone rang once before the receiver picked up.

"Jacob!" My mind was relieved that he had actually picked up, I would much rather alert him before telling my father which would eventually alert the entire police department.

"Bella? What's wrong, you sound anxious?" Static filtered in with his voice as thunder rumbled through the night.

"It's Avery, I can't find him anywhere. His window was open, he wasn't in bed, and it's raining so I can't catch any scent beyond the window. I need your help, I have no idea where he would go!"

"Alright, Bells. Just calm down, you need to be thinking straight if we're going to find him. Have you told Charlie?"

"How can I tell him, Jake? If he knew he'd alert the rest of the police department and what would happen when he did find him? Avery might tell him about us! Why do you think he ran away?"

"I'll be at your house in five, search the yard, garage, and neighboring yards while you're waiting." Before I could respond, the line was silent.

I wish I could feel the cold and the numb that accompanied it, but all I could feel was worry. He had always told me not to go into the woods, what if Avery had? What if he had thought that that was the best place to go that I would never find him? As I stared into the black, ominous trees they had never looked so dangerous.

Headlights filled the dark of the trees and I turned around to see Jacob running out of the car that had a tire on the grass, his feet creating muddy footprints along the water-darkened sidewalk.

"Bella," He screamed over the roar of thunder and lightning flashed over his straight features. "Bella, are you alright?" I could hear him clearly with great hearing and I knew I was not okay.

I shook my head. "Where could he be Jake?"

"He wouldn't have gone to a friend's house or to Charlie's; they all live too far, even if he does run. He's either along one of the roads walking toward a certain destination or in there." He nodded his head toward the direction of the words.

"I'll go onto the roads and search for him, you can morph and search for him in the forest. Do you know where he would be going?"

Turning me toward the road he pointed his finger to the right as he stood by me, "He would try to go to the park, maybe sleep in a slide or something. That's your best bet if he isn't in the forest."

"Good luck, and please hurry." I shouted, raising my voice above the pounding rain. As lightning struck, I saw a large furry body creep around the forest.

I ran through sheets of rain, not bothering to go human speed even if it was clear, I would be running my heart out, even though it was silent. While analyzing each side of the road. He was no where as I sprinted across puddles and muddy sidewalks. I did not bother to call his name. If he ran away from me, why would he answer my calls?

I felt as though I was searching for a needle in a haystack, only the hay was as sharp as the needles so I could not tell between the two. I would occasionally see a small form, but it usually turned out to be a garbage bag waiting to be picked up or the occasional stray dog caught in the downpour. I was not even able to smell if he had been in that area, it felt as though I would never find him.

On entering the park, I immediately checked all the benches and swings with my eyes and then ran over to the slides to search for him. Nervousness and worry made my movements jerky and urgent, so anything in my path could have been marked as I searched.

The two emotions quickly faded away as relief came in and destroyed them when I saw the small breathing body inside the largest tunnel slide. His knees were together with his head tucked in between as he lay on his side with his head resting on his school backpack, most likely stuffed with the extra clothes and candies that were missing from his closet and dresser.

"Avery?" His head popped up from knees, but he did not scoot away from me as I had expected when I entered the tunnel awkwardly. "Are you alright?"

His hair and clothes were soaked with rainwater and had created puddles beside him in the tunnel. His eyes were wet, but whether it was from rain or tears I could not tell. He shook his head from side to side, splattering me with water like a wet dog after a bath. "I'm cold."

Guilt set in and I knew how he had felt when we were waiting in that tent that night. There was nothing I could do to make him warmer; hugging him would only cause him to lose heat. "I'm sorry baby," was the only comfort I could give to him. "Do you want to go back home? I could make hot chocolate and we could both change." I hoped he would give in, but hoping was not always good enough.

Avery set his jaw and shook his head stubbornly. "Not yet."

Recognizing the generic stubbornness he received from both parents, I sighed. Sure he might catch a cold, but I would let him have school off tomorrow anyway. It was only one Friday. "What did Jacob tell you?"

Fidgeting with his wet jacket sleeve, he twitched his head to move a stray dripping lock of hair out of his eyes and I could not help but think that he might need a hair cut soon. "He told me that you were a vampire and that he was a werewolf. That was why you hated each other, but he denies it, saying that you don't hate each other, that it is only a strong dislike."

"Did he tell you what vampires are like?" I asked hesitantly, it would be just like a werewolf from the La Push pack to tell him that we were only bloodsucking leeches that wanted to only kill humans.

"He said that you were cold ones, and that you have red eyes. That you drink blood with your teeth." I could feel him shudder and I wished I could calm his fears or at least be a normal mother who could comfort him and warm him with a hug.

I nodded silently, "But what kind of blood do we drink? Because you have seen my eyes, and do they look red to you?"

He looked at me, studying me very carefully, "You're eyes look like gold, so I guess that's wrong. He also said you drink animal blood, but you still wanted to drink human blood."

His innocent eyes stared at me as I shook my head hard, swinging my wet clumps of hair around like swings, "No, I would never drink from a human. I would never be a murderer, do not forget that. My eyes are gold because I drink animal blood, but some vampires are murderers, which is why there eyes are red."

"But you're not like that, right?"

"Of course not. Are you ready to go home? Jacob is probably still looking for you, and you need to change." He nodded. I swung his small backpack over my shoulder and picked him up. His small arms held my neck.

"Is that why you're hard?" I nodded.

"You know what else vampires can do?" I asked him. He shook his head, his eyes pleading for an answer. "We are super strong and super fast."

"Like Superman?"

I laughed and focused on my son. Vampires could not be totally evil, as he once said. They could be heroes to not just the villains, "Yes, like Superman but better. Now close your eyes or you'll get sick. Ready?" He nodded and shut his eyes tightly while tucking his head into my shoulder. With that I ran as fast as I could toward my house through the pouring rain and in less than a blink f an eye, I was gone, flying towards safety, security, and my life-my son.

**(:**

**Mia**


	12. Wink

"Mom, where is my dad

**If I owned Twilight- do I have to go through this again? I think you get the picture.**

_**Previously…**_

"_You know what else vampires can do?" I asked him. He shook his head, his eyes pleading for an answer. "We are super strong and super fast." _

"_Like Superman?" _

_I laughed and focused on my son. Vampires could not be totally evil, as he once said. They could be heroes to not just the villains, "Yes, like Superman. Now close your eyes or you'll get sick. Ready?" He nodded and shut his eyes tightly while tucking his head into my shoulder. With that I ran as fast as I could toward my house through the pouring rain with my son._

**Now**

_**Seconds to minutes, minutes to hours, hours to days, days to weeks, weeks to months, months to years**_

"Mom, where is my dad?" Avery looked at me with questionable but determined eyes. I flinched as Avery said 'my dad' and pushed the memories to the back of my head. We had been living in our small house for about six years and Avery was now fifteen. I would not say that he is a younger version of him, but he is not a younger version of me either.

It had been thirteen years since I was bitten, and thirteen years since I received that note. Time was running out and I had no way or form of slowing it down.

We had grown closer, even though it is common for children at this age to rebel against their parents. Avery seemed to be like me in the fact that he did not seem to quite fit in with all the rest of his classmates. He did have a few friends, and a couple of girls following him around, but I would not say that he completely fit with them. He was still cautious of me after the runaway incident, but time took its course he could tell that I was still his mom and would never hurt him. He thought some of my abilities were pretty cool.

I sighed, wishing I knew the answer to that myself. "Avery-"

"I know that you don't want to talk about it until I'm older, but can you at least tell me where he is?" His eyes were in such turmoil-a cross between frustration and sadness-that I did not trust him with the truth.

"I don't know where he is, Ave. I wish I knew myself, but I don't."

"Can I at least know who he was?" Avery had never really brought up the subject of his father. When he mentioned it, I am sure that he was able to see me flinch or some signal that it caused me pain to talk about it so he would drop it, but today was a new day, a new hour, minute, and second and eventually he would want to find out, I just hoped that it would take as long as possible for us to reach that point.

"How much has Jacob told you?"

"What? What are you talking about?" Avery gave me the innocent act; he was not a gifted liar like his father. At times, he thought he was clever, but fooling me was not easy-especially with little experience and skill.

"Avery."

"Fine, fine. He told me that he was a vampire, such as yourself, he had a bad temper." I almost laughed at that. "And that you loved him very much and he loved you very much too, until he left. But why did he leave? Jake only gave me a few hints here and there, but he never gave me any blunt answers. Mom, I need to know about my dad. I don't even know his name!" His face was contorted with anger that seeped through his eyes. His nostrils flared, seeing he was out of breath from his long speech.

"His name is Edward Anthony Cullen, and you're right, he was a vampire, but grace and beauty does not attract me. You are his child which is why your last name is his. He was in a family, or coven as some may call it, of seven. There were his parents, Carlisle and Esme, his sisters, Alice and Rosalie, and then there were his brothers, Emmett and Jasper. Your father was very caring; he always put himself before others. You know how vampires always crave for human blood, well this was how it was with him and me. He constantly craved my blood, but he was able to restrain himself enough to not give in to his desires."

"If he was a vampire, then how was I born?"

"Shush, I will get to that part. There were always obstacles in our way. For one, he was a vampire and I was a human. Vampires were after me because of my 'sweet smelling blood' and because I was a magnet for trouble. Edward blamed all of this on himself, and left but he came back promising never to leave again." I chuckled at how naïve I was to believe him that he would actually stay because he claimed to love me. An average human? Impossible. "Jacob loved me too, but I chose to marry Edward and he ran away. When he came back, we remained friends, but it was never the friendship we had before. There was always an awkwardness between us whenever we were alone together." I reminisced the precious moments and was caught in a trance until I saw Avery's eyes staring at me. I continued.

"One day, Edward and I were walking in Port Angeles when a strange, but beautiful, woman came up to us. She had red eyes so we naturally thought she was a vampire. She did something to him, and at the moment I had no idea what was wrong with him, but I knew that he was in great pain. She helped us to get back to his house, which was huge, and then he started to get warm and he had a pulse. I concluded that the woman, who's name was December, had turned him into a human.

"Edward loved being human. He did not have to worry constantly when he was around me that he would hug me too hard and crush me or that he would drink my blood. He also enjoyed trying all the different types of foods again. So now he was human, as I was, so we did certain things which resulted in you after nine months.

"December had only turned Edward into a human for two weeks, so he had to go through the transformation of a vampire again. Carlisle, his adopted vampire father, thought it would be best if they left because Edward might not be able to control his thirst that he might have, being a newborn. So they left, but not before Carlisle promised to me that they would return, and if they did not return before you were born, Alice would for sure."

"So he never came back? He just left?" Avery eyes were angry and I shook my head sadly without really processing everything around me. It was as if he were holding saran wrap on his mouth and speaking through it.

"No, it was not that simple. When Carlisle makes a promise he always fulfills it. Well, at least partially. That is what he did this time. Edward came back, but he was so different. For one thing, his eyes were blood red. It might have been because he had just changed, but it just felt like it was for another reason. He was cold and fierce to me. He did not hurt me except for the things he said to me." As I said the words my world was white and dark, no colors, and my body felt numb like a broken limb after you had left the ice on it for too long. "He did not remember that he had given me a child to carry and he told me he hated me, and that I disgusted him. After that he left.

"Charlie took care of me after that. I never told you this, but you have a sister. Her name is Sage, but she died a few minutes after she was born. It was the lack of oxygen that caused this, and the doctors were unable to give it to her in enough time."

Avery face was blank and I was beginning to think that he was going into shock, but he spoke calmly with perfect diction. "He just left you? After he said all those horrible things to you? You guys were so in love, I can tell from your eyes, and he just left you? God damn it, my father was a jackass bastard. Does Jacob know the full story?"

I did not bother to reprimand him for language; I was still in a partial daze seeing only blacks, whites, and grays. "Don't say that, he's still your father and no, Jacob does not know and I do not plan on telling him anytime soon and neither are you." My voice remained emotionless, but Avery understood I meant what I said.

He shrugged lazily, but his shoulders were stiff and his jaw was set. His eyes were pits of green snakes, waiting for their next victim for fall in. "I'm going over to Jake's."

I nodded, "Just be home before dinner, Jake can come over if he wants. Please, Avery, nothing about our conversation." Slumping into the kitchen chair, I closed my eyes and wished I could fall asleep. Thinly muscled arms wrapped around me. "Thank you, Avery."

_**Seconds to minutes**_

"Did you know my father was a jackass?" Avery Anthony Cullen asked Jacob Black. They sat on the pebbled First Beach and watched the multiple waves crash into foam against the cliffs. Jacob had a faraway look in his eyes, thinking of the time when Bella would have died if he had not swam into the ocean to get her. Avery was not really staring at them, he was thinking about how, if he were some stronger being, he would beat his father so that he would know just how much pain he had caused his mother for the past fifteen years.

"Yup, why do you think I hate him so much?"

"And you couldn't give me a hint?" Jacob shook his head.

"You're mom would've been pissed."

"Yeah, if she had been a little more coherent she would've shouted at me for calling him a jackass bastard. Why does she do those things? Even when she didn't like you she would never curse at you or anything like that."

Jacob's heart felt empty as he spoke his words which sounded just as hollow, "It's just the way your mom is. That person may practically crush her, physically or otherwise, but if that person has done some good in the past that she knows off, she would save his life at any time. It's weird, but she does it. Especially if she has any feelings toward them. She is different. She's special." Jacob's dark eyes turned back to stare at the rolling ocean.

"Maybe we should all be more like her."

Jacob chuckled morosely, "Yes, she makes everyone think that when they meet her."

_**Seconds to minutes, minutes to hours, hours to days**_

Avery Anthony Masen Cullen laid on a lumpy coach watching MTV's "Pimp My Ride" on a less-than-average side TV while his mom cooked him dinner. He could not understand why someone would actually drive in that sort of car. He had to admit; the water bed and lights in the trunk were awesome, but why would you drive around in an electric green car with a tunnel to catch wind to blow dry your hair on the roof of the car? That just seemed stupid.

A knock on the front door could be heard throughout the house and Avery sat up from his position on the couch and sighed as he got up. "Ave, can you get that?"

"On my way," Avery switched off the TV with the small plastic remote, thinking it was most likely Charlie or Jacob coming over for dinner, although neither had called to warn beforehand.

Avery's fingers grabbed the cool metal handle and turned, he was prepared in case Jacob pounced him like last time he had come over. His mom had ended up breaking up the wrestling match, so Avery was sure that if she had not interrupted he would have won. Jacob thought otherwise.

But the door did not swing open to reveal the tall, tanned, werewolf in human form with long black hair and a friendly smile. The person on the front porch was almost exactly the opposite. She was very small, probably about five feet of four feet with eleven inches, with short black hair. Her skin was pale as a dentist's front teeth and she had golden eyes.

Seeing his blank expression, the strange small woman smiled up to him, "Hey, is your mom home?" She smiled, but anxiety was clearly written across her face.

Avery was just about to say 'I want to know who you are before I tell you anything about my mother' when he heard a plate hit the ground of the kitchen and create a wave of sound. "Avery, who is at the door?" His mother's voice came out nervous and shaky, the same as it had been a few days ago when she recounted her past to him.

Before he could ask the woman, she gave him a smile accompanied with a wink and said, "Just tell her Alice Cullen, she'll know who I am."

**:) Things will start to get better.**

**Mia**


	13. Anything

I own the Twilight Saga and all it's characters as much as I own the moon

**I own the Twilight Saga and all it's characters as much as I own the moon. **

_**Previously…**_

_Avery was just about to say who 'I want to know who you are before I tell you anything about my mother' when he heard a plate hit the ground of the kitchen and create a wave of sound. "Avery, who is at the door?" His mother's voice came out nervous and shaky, the same as it had been a few days ago when she recounted her past to him. _

_Before he could ask the woman, she gave him a smile accompanied with a wink and said, "Just tell her Alice Cullen, she'll know who I am." _

**Now**

_**Years to months, months to weeks, weeks to days, days to hours, hours to minutes, minutes to seconds**_

Mary Alice Brandon Cullen heard her brother's footsteps exiting her father's office in a house located in Cape Cod, Massachusetts. She knew that her brother would not argue with her father's decision, he almost certainly was relieved by it. He always put Bella's safety before everything, even Bella's emotions and decisions.

The future was not set, she did not know if her brother would act as bloodthirsty as a newborn would. She could only tell that his eyes would be red, but that fact had already been expected because he had used blood while he was human. Her brother and her father had not decided when they would try his control around the human population yet, so Alice could not tell if he would become a monster when he smelt a human.

Alice stood in her closet, rearranging the color order of her clothes as she waited for her brother to decide which of his questions he should ask from behind her.

"Carlisle just told me why."

"I know, I heard."

"Will anyone come in my way as I'm hunting?"

He was not really going to go hunt, but why ruin his fun? "No, no one will be hiking around in the forest today. Who does when it's raining this hard?" Red, pink, orange, yellow-orange…

"Will she be alright?"

Yellow, green, damn, why was purple right here? "She and Charlie had a fight when we left and she went home. He does not want to have anything to do with your baby after you left and claims that he will not help Bella with the baby when you refuse to help. She is a little low, but she is still holding up as far as I can see. No cliff-diving or motorcycles."

She giggled as an angry puff of air was blown onto her from his mouth and a few seconds later she could hear the door shut behind him.

Rain splattered the window silently. Turquoise, blue, royal blue, indigo, violet-

Eternity sucks. Two arms slunk around Alice's waist and she felt love flood her emotions. Well, maybe it did not suck that bad.

Alice had been right; Edward Anthony Masen Cullen had not planned on hunting. When it was silently pouring rain like this all of the animals would be under cover, trying not to become wet.

He missed her. He had broken another promise, and he felt immensely guilty, but this was for her safety. But is that not what he told himself when he first left her? Edward could never understand what Bella was going to do next and he was never able to understand what was best for her. He thought that it would be best to leave her at first, but that resulted in her playing with werewolves and doing dangerous stunts to try to hear his voice. His eyes drifted to a close and he tried to sleep as he had done last week. Was it really that short of a time ago? It felt like months since he had last seen her smiling at him.

Swift changes in the rain and a deliberate crunching of dead leaves alerted his senses. Someone was here, and that person wanted Edward to know that he was near him. Edward stood up and turned around, greeted by the Volturi Guard's face Demetri. He was with another two vampires. Edward recognized the smaller one, Jane, but he had not seen the other one. The other one was a male vampire with red eyes. His features were handsome but it looked as if his bones were barely vibrating underneath his skin. No one would have noticed their movements unless they had been studying his face carefully. He was about an inch or two taller than Edward and a bit less muscled than Emmett with bleach blond hair.

"Edward. It has been a while, has it not?" Demetri looked harmless enough and his thoughts mimicked his spoken words.

"Demetri, and no, it has only been a few months at most since we last saw each other."

Demetri continued with his positive attitude, "Well, time is of no consequence for us, unlike humans. One moment they are born, the next moment the same one is lying in there grave. Do you not agree, Edward?" Demetri was acting as if a visit from the Volturi Guards was as normal as seeing your parents every morning.

Not in the least bit. Edward had knew exactly where Demetri was leading him but he would remain impassive and act as if it were normal for the Volturi Guard to visit everyday as Demetri was implying. "It certainly seems that way, unless you actually pay attention to them. It is easier for a snake to sneak up and bite, if its prey does not notice it."

"Well, snakes are by far much cleverer than humans. Can a human sneak up on you Edward?" Edward did not answer as Demetri paused and looked at him innocently. "Of course not, that would be silly. Humans are fragile; a snake bite would certainly kill them, unless they got the venom out of course." Edward nodded, giving no indication to for him to go on. Edward noticed the similarities with Demetri's snake story and Bella's James' incident. Demetri did not need any encouragement anyway. "A vampire's bite, on the other hand, would just change them. In a way, it is dying. We are not truly alive after all, just one of the damned."

"I am glad you are filling me on this, but I have known this for a while now. I am quite sure that you did not come here all the way from Volterra just to tell me that when a human is bitten by a vampire they will join them in the undead world. So please, skip to the point of your visit."

Demetri laughed, "Oh, you do not have to worry, Edward. I am already there. You see, the Volturi want your Isabella, Aro and Felix especially. We came here to check up on you two, after Jane informed us that she was still human." The petite girl grinned up at him, like a cat who had just caught a mouse and had brought it to its master to see before it killed it. "So, where is our dear Isabella?"

"Well she is not here, sorry to disappoint you." Edward answered curtly.

"But isn't she always with you? She did fly all the way to Volterra just to see you."

"She's not here, you can search the area and smell everything you want but you will not find her here."

Demetri's eyes grew cloudy with frustration, "Then where is she?"

Edward smiled back pleasantly, "Not here, now if all the only reason you have come here is to find her, you can go back to Italy."

To his surprise, Demetri smiled pleasantly back, "Naïve, Edward. We know where you met her, remember? Aro read it loud in clear when you came with your request to Volterra last time. We can always search there."

Edward thought he hid his shock from the words well as he grinned back, but he did not know that his eyes had already given away his fear, "And if she is not there?"

"We will decide that after we search the area thoroughly. You already told us who her father was by your memories, we can always ask him." Edward saw the triumph in Demetri's eyes. It made his stomach clench when he saw what he would do to her through his thoughts.

"Is this your newest member?" Edward asked, gesturing to the male vampire by Jane.

"Yes," Demetri nodded stiffly. "This is Fausto, our newest Volturi member."

"And what is his talent?"

"Informing you of that is unnecessary at the moment, he is just here to accompany me on searching for your Bella. As I said before, Aro is upset that you did not take your first chance and I am assuming that she is not a vampire at the moment." Edward stared blankly at Demetri, so he continued on. "Of course not. Unless you wish to make any further deals with us, we will be continuing on to Forks, Washington in pursuit of your Isabella. By the way Edward, we cannot assure you that we will be able to control ourselves as you are able to do."

Demetri's euphoric smile ignited a growl from Edward's chest. "No."

"You should have considered this when you decided not to change her, Edward." Demetri motioned to the other two vampires and they all began to turn to leave except for Demetri's blood red eyes and then they left too.

Edward only thought of Bella when as he thought the next words, "But what about me?"

Even though Demetri's back was still toward him, Edward could sense the cruel smile in his thoughts and voice, "What about you, Edward?"

"I know that Aro has wanted me for his guard for some time. If I gave myself to the Volturi Guard and would you leave Bella alone?" Edward knew he had to be careful by setting the demands, if he said the wrong thing it might make the angry and that was the worst thing that could happen at the moment.

Demetri turned to face him alone with Jane and Fausto, "I am not quite sure that Aro would agree to that. Trading one vampire for a potentially remarkable vampire?"

"Potentially. None of us knows if she will be remarkable. We do not even know if she will have any powers."

Demetri nodded thoughtfully, but even though his thoughts were well hidden from him, Edward was beginning to think that he had this planned all along. "We should discuss with this Aro. Come with us to Volterra." Edward nodded and followed the three as they sauntered off into the trees. Alice would certainly see where he was going, no need to tell them.

_**Seconds to minutes, minutes to hours**_

Edward stepped silently through the Volturi Castle following Demetri. When they first entered the lobby, Edward saw that a new human woman was there. Through his thoughts, Demetri told him that she was not a vampire. Edward was glad Bella was not here and did not plan on telling her about this if they ever saw each other again.

Aro, Caius, and Marcus each sat on their respectable thrones. Aro's face fell when he saw that Edward was coming in. He had obviously been hoping for Bella, but even so his face was still brightened by the fact that Edward might be here to join his guard.

"Hello, Edward. I had been expecting young Isabella, so why are you here?"

Demetri made a move to speak but before he could say a word Aro made a stern hand gesture and Demetri fell back. Aro then nodded at Edward to give a response.

"Although I am the one you had planned on coming here, I have come to discuss her. I am willing to trade her services for mine."

"And does our dear Isabella agree to this proposition?" Aro asked, his eyes danced for he was amused that Edward had deceived his love. It was quite obvious that was what he had done, if he had told her anything at all.

Edward remained stolid, "She has not been informed."

"What reasons do I have for trading her services for yours?"

"You do not know that Isabella will have these wonderful talents, and if she does she may not be willing to allow you to use them for yourself. Isabella is a stubborn woman who does things her way and for the benefits of others. If you hold her against her will and force her to do these things that she believes are immoral, she will not cooperate." Aro's eyes went still and considered the faults in his plans, well this is what Edward could figure from his mind which was in a jumble and was as easy to piece together as a 1000 piece puzzle was for a human. "But if you did trade me for her than it would be so much simpler, would it not? You know for certain what my talent is and I will be totally inclined to do what ever it is you ask me to do."

"Anything?" Aro asked and Edward realized his mistake at once.

"To a certain extent, we all have morals and priorities, do we not?" Edward's voice was teasing as he tried to cover up the flaw; he even lifted up the right corner of his mouth.

"Yes, what you say makes sense. Hold out your hand." Aro commanded him.

Edward had already been expecting this, so he held walked halfway to Aro. If he had walked up to him completely the guards may have thought he could attack, he had to be cautious with everything he did from here until Aro agreed with him.

Aro, who had been startled because he had been certain that Edward was hiding something from him, did not expect for Edward to hold out his hand so freely and easily. He had been hoping that he would have had to use Jane to force him to hold out his hand. Nonetheless, he touched his finger to his palm and read his memories and thoughts.

After a time, Aro lifted his finger and turned to sit back on his throne. Edward also stepped back, even though it was closer to Demetri, Fausto and Jane he was closer to the door. That truth made him feel better even if he did have no chance of getting through it with Jane standing right in front of it.

Sparkling and interested eyes gazed at Edward from Aro's sockets, "I have decided that I will allow you to switch with Isabella, but you are not the only one gaining from this. You have to answer by my demands too. You are allowed no contact with Isabella or any other being from outside of the Volterra castle. Before this regulation will be issued, you will tell your family that they will also be restricted from contacting or meeting Isabella. Is that all Caius?" Aro turned to regard him.

Caius did not bother to look onto his brother when he gave his short nod, but his eyes were interested as well. "

"Marcus?"

Marcus did nothing to convey his choice physically; he only touched the back of Aro's hand that lay on the arm rest of the throne.

"Very well then, Edward is there any last requests you would like to make?"

Edward wondered if the three brothers would be insulted if he requested to drink animal blood. Was this too much of going his own way while he was in the Volturi Guard? Edward decided that he would never know until he asked. "Will I be able to drink from animals?"

Aro's eyes were calm with a bit of fire burning around the black pupil. "Of course not, drinking from animals does not give a vampire the strength he needs. A vampire's natural food source is a human and if he does not drink from a human, he will never be fully satiated and he will be weak. Weak guards are not useful to the Volturi Guard."

Edward nodded, his face showing no express of remorse that he felt for betraying Carlisle's teachings. It was for Bella.

"Fausto, show Edward to his room." Aro also gave Fausto a distinct hand signal, but Edward could not discern it even by reading either of the two's mind.

**:)**

**Mia**


	14. Where

Own nothing

**I own nothing.**

_**Previously…**_

_Edward nodded, his face showing no express of remorse that he felt for betraying Carlisle's teachings. It was for Bella._

"_Fausto, show Edward to his room." Aro also gave Fausto a distinct hand signal, but Edward could not discern it even by reading either of the two's mind._

**Now**

"Please Alice; this is for her and your own good-"

"Damn it Edward! You said the same things last time you left! Do you honestly think that she will be able to live after you've gone? You must think about this from her perspective, not just from yours!" Mary Alice Brandon Cullen voice spouted from one end of the telephone, trying to convince her brother to come back home.

"I know, Alice, but you don't understand." Edward Anthony Masen Cullen's mind raced, if he could not get her to leave Bella alone than she would be endangering Bella, herself, and their family. "They will kill her, you and our family. These are the Volturi, Aro massacred a whole village just to get Jane and Alec, do you really think we would seem to be a problem to them?"

Alice did not speak, so Edward continued while she was listening, "Even if we did learn how to fight from Jasper, we could not defeat the guard. I have seen how they train, and it is nothing like Jasper has ever seen. We are not talking about inexperienced newborns, Alice, we are talking about the Volturi Guard. Not to mention that they have Jane and Alec, the two reasons for why the guard is invincible."

He heard an angry sigh from the end and immediately felt relieved that she would agree with him now. "If you are so convinced that this is right for Bella, then go ahead. I will not leave the family or convince them to go look for Bella. I will always watch her, though, and you."

"Thank you, Alice. Be safe and carry on my message to the rest of the family."

"Of course." The line was silent from there on.

Alice had been the one that had been hardest to convince to leave Bella alone. It was because she had been the one to see both Edward and Bella's pain while Edward had left and she knew it had not been for either of their own good. Alice had realized that this was for all of their safety because this time the Volturi was involved.

Edward sat on the bed of his room. The room was very dull, starting with the grey stonewalls and floor. The furniture consisted of a single bed with white sheets and a tan comforter, a chair and a desk set in front of the chair. Light came from a medium sized window opposite the door he had come in, above his head there was also a ceiling light that would help him light the darkness of night. A door in the wall by the window led to a small bathroom with only a sink and a shower. What else did he really need?

Music. Edward felt as if he were going insane without that element in his life. To keep his thoughts away from her, Edward would remember songs and pieces he had heard and created. Memories could only go so far, they did not really help him lose the desire for music but they did keep his mind away from Bella, but even with distractions, he would never stop thinking of her.

A knock at his door stopped him in the middle of remembering Beethoven's 5th. He did not bother answering the door, whoever was there would enter anyway. No one in the Volturi needed an invitation.

The knock had come from Felix. As he entered, he kept fidgeting with his left hand. A bloodied circle around his wrist made Edward assume that it had been ripped off and that Felix was trying to connect it back to his arm.

"Aro demands to see you." Felix wiggled his fingers, satisfied with their movement, as the circle faded.

"Do you know the occasion?"

Felix smirked and twisted a crooked finger on the newly restored hand, it made a pop as it straightened. "We have a visitor. Aro wishes for you to help him get more acquainted to the castle."

Edward noticed the maliciousness in the words, but he could not detect anything from Felix's thoughts other than curses towards this visitor. Out of obedience and curiousness, Edward followed Felix towards the throne room.

"Ah, Edward, Felix informed you that we have a guest, did he not?" Aro sat in his usual throne by his brothers. He had a gleam in his eyes that was like a wicked child who likes to torture animals for the fun of it.

Edward nodded, "He told me this but did not tell me who the visitor was or why they were here, but I was able to detect that he and this visitor are not on friendly terms and that the visitor will be staying for a while." He kept his voice low and monotonous, expressing no feeling.

Aro's eyes brightened more and he grinned, "Yes, well Felix is just being a bad sport about it. You are correct, the visitor will be staying for a long while and I need you to watch over him and make sure he does not try to escape or anything of that sort. Felix, please show Edward to our guest's room, but I may warn you. Jane is currently with him, so it may be a bit loud in there." Edward wished that he was not adapting too much to the Volturi ways when his stomach did not clench at the thought of Jane using her powers. He had no choice, but he hoped that he would never become completely like them. His human emotions were the last things that held him close to Bella.

Edward had never been to the dungeons before, which he considered a good thing. They were nothing special, just the typical medieval torture devices hanging on the moldy stone walls, except these looked much more sinister. Whether it was because these devices were specially made for vampires or it was because he was seeing them in reality Edward could not really confirm. Tiny windows were placed where the ceiling met the walls, but barely enough light came in to see well.

Had Edward really expected that this guest would be another vampire he just needed to show through the castle? Maybe some part of his mind did believe that, but it was only wishful thinking. The Volturi did everything for a reason, and most of the time their reasons were not pleasant.

In the corner of the medium sized room with high ceilings, was a large furry figure slouched against the wall chair and a pair of jeans beside it. A small girlish figure, Jane, stood in front of it with her back turned towards Edward. He did not have to have her facing him to be able to see her grin. The figure was panting heavily from her previous torture but from Jane's mind, Edward could see that she had only just begun.

Felix smiled as Edward grimaced when the roar of the werewolf ricocheted off of the stone walls. The echoes of his roars continued and when they began to fade, a whole new set was started. Edward filled his mind with Felix's thoughts so that he would not have to endure the same pain as the wolf. Although his mind was also filled with ways to torture the new werewolf, they did not pain him since they were only plans and ideas.

Felix began to give instructions when he realized that Edward would never hear him with the howls being as loud as they were. Once he remembered that Edward was a mind-reader, he began to send them through his mind, 'Now you see who our guest is. We need you to stay down here for a few months to make sure that he does not try to escape or plan to. Jane will also be down here frequently to break his will to leave. You may come up thrice a week for a day, one of those times will be to feed, while Demetri or I watch him.'

The werewolf had stopped screaming, but he was still in his wolf form and his chest went up and down rapidly.

"I believe that is enough for today, Jane." Demetri's voice rang from the opening of the dungeon.

Jane pouted with a glint of evil and disappointment in her eyes, "But I was only just starting." She grinned back toward the werewolf and he shuddered.

"Yes, but too much may strain him if he is in need of rest. Aro would be displeased if you ruined his tool."

"Oh, alright." Jane then marched out of the door pausing to look at Felix. "Felix, have you seen Alec around here?"

Felix shook his head, "No, the last time I saw him he was waiting around the entrance from Heidi."

"Heidi's coming today?" Jane's eyes gleamed.

Felix nodded, "Yes, did you not hear earlier?"

Jane's pale brown hair swished from side to side, "I was too busy here. I'll go check if Heidi's here yet, if not I'll search for Alec." She glared at Demetri, and both he and Edward flinched at the short burst of pain she sent, she smirked as she left the dungeon. Demetri and Felix asked Edward if he wanted to go check if Heidi was there yet with them, but Edward declined. He was trying to restrain himself as much as he could before he absolutely had to drink blood. By then it would not matter whether it was a human or an animal, only that it he needed blood. The thirst would cloud his vision and he would be grateful because then he would not be able to see the terror on the human's face, his mind would be focused on only the blood pulsing through his veins. He was saddened with himself, but he knew that it had to be done.

The light faded since most of it had been coming from the doorway. Edward sat down by the door with his back against the opposite wall of the wolf so that he could watch him. Now that he was no longer being put in pain and that there were fewer vampires in the room, he began phasing back into a boy. Edward was struck with sympathy by how young the boy was, he could only be twelve, possibly thirteen but Edward doubted it. He was sure that the young werewolf could do a lot less plotting to escape as a human. If he was going to try to contact his friends to help break him out than he would have to be in werewolf form.

Edward noticed that he had a chain connected to a metal ring around his neck and two other chains connected to his wrists. The rings seemed to shrink and grow when he phased.

Dark Brown eyes regarded him cautiously. Edward jerked his head towards the pants sitting on the chair. The boy's eyes flickered to the chair and in a swift movement grabbed the pants and had them on, he barely rattling the chains as he did so. The boy continued to hatefully watch Edward as he watched the boy without interest. Eventually the boy's eyes closed and he fell asleep, Edward did not blame him for hoping to escape the horrors of the Volturi by resting and Edward wished that he could join him in his temporary freedom.

_**Seconds to minutes, minutes to hours, hours to days**_

On that first night while the wolf slept, Edward realized how boring this job would be. For four out of seven days of a week for some months he would have to just sit here and listen to the wolves thoughts? Edward knew that he had to do something or else he may lose his mind.

"What is your name?" Edward asked casually, as if he were talking to a friend.

The wolf glared in response, "Why do you care?" His voice held a French accent mixed with Italian.

"Because, although I did not choose to be down here and neither did you, but since I am down here with you I am extremely bored and I would like to know your name. My name is Edward."

The wolf gave him one last nasty glance and sighed quietly, "Guiseppe."

Edward nodded, finally getting somewhere after counting the stone blocks in the walls. "You don't sound like you are from Italy."

"That's because I'm not. You don't sound like you're from here either."

"I'm not. I came from America, my family and I would travel a lot but I recently came from Cape Cod." Edward realized that Guiseppe would never give up information before he did, the fact did not matter to Edward, he might even waste more time by attaining information this way.

"Embrun, France. Bloodsuckers were running wild there, so naturally our pack had to change." He studied Edward's face before he asked, "How did you get from Cape Cod to here? You said you had family, why did you leave them?"

Edward thought about saying, 'It's complicated, you wouldn't understand.' But he remembered Jacob and how they could have been friends if they had not been fighting over Bella. This boy did not know anything about her, so why not try it out? Besides, he had nothing better to do.

So Edward told him everything, from when he met Bella, to when Demetri came and he made the deal with Aro. He had to explain which Volturi members were which but Guiseppe was able to understand. Twice he fell asleep and Edward had to pause between chapters of his story. He was pretty sure he was able to waste three days, which added to the when he first came down and their first day of silence, made four days. Demetri, Felix, and Jane would be coming soon. Edward did not know if Guiseppe knew this, but either way he did not want to bring up the subject of him being tortured. Jane may only create torture through the mind, but Edward had seen what Felix had been planning. He did not want to know if he had created any new ideas.

"So now I'm here." Edward concluded. He searched for Felix's, Demetri's, or Jane's to see if they were coming down yet. Felix had just decided to fetch the others to come down to switch places with Edward.

Edward looked at Guiseppe, he was only twelve, his eyes shown with interest and despair from his story. How could they do this to a fourteen year-old? Easy, they are the Volturi. They have murdered thousands of people. Why should a werewolf, an enemy even if he was only fourteen, be any different?

Guiseppe looked half asleep, but still attentive enough to have heard Edward's life story. "Wow, you should write a biography, you'd make millions."

Edward nodded, too bothered by the coming Felix to chuckle at the boy's amusement. "Listen, Guiseppe. I am truly sorry, what will happen in the next ten minutes is completely out of my control. I will try to convince those higher than me to do otherwise but after I just told you, I do not have much power."

Footsteps could be heard from the stairs leading down to the dungeon, and the two mythical creatures looked toward the sound. Edward's face was inexpressive as he waited for the three vampires, but he was afraid for the young fourteen year-old. They both knew that they would not kill him, but Edward knew that there were worse much things that can make you wish you would be killed. Edward looked at the boy's face. His face tried to mimic Edward's impassiveness, but the fear and anger shone through. Edward did not want to think about how this would spur the three on.

Edward thought about suggesting Guiseppe to phase into a wolf and try to fight back, but what would happen then? Jane would make him in pain so much that he would not want to fight, or the three other vampires would defeat him easily, but what if somehow, he did escape? It would not work, the whole Volturi was out there and if I was helping him escape, I would be no match for all of them. The ideas flowed in quantities to his head, but all of them were imperfect. There was no way to get out of this.

It was Jane who came down first, immediately following her arrival a sharp pain hit Guiseppe and immediately to Edward who had been reading his thoughts. Jane laughed at the discovery of how she could hurt both people at once.

After Jane, entered Felix and Demetri, both of who looked freshly fed and ready to torture. Demetri nodded to Edward, signaling that he was allowed to leave. He did with no looking back, he was too afraid of what he might see in the boy's eyes. Would he feel betrayed? Would he understand that Edward was just as hopeless and trapped as he was? Their only difference was that Edward was here by will; both of them were being held in the castle.

Edward took in a breath and let it out, he was not able to detect blood from miles away so he decided that he could wait maybe a few days until he needed to drink. To keep his mind off of the coming deaths he would cause, he decided to go to Aro.

He found Aro talking to a male guard Edward was unfamiliar with. Judging by the unknown guard, they were discussing the change of the new woman at the desk. The guard was telling Aro that he had see that she was uncommonly bipolar; if she was changed she may have an interesting power. Edward was able to detect the guard's protectiveness of the woman when Aro shook his head and told him that she would not be useful to the Volturi guard, but she certainly smelled magnificent.

Aro's face turned up to Edward and greeted him with a nod and asked, "What is it that you require my presence, Edward?"

Edward held out his hand-for it was much easier than explaining the entire story, Edward did not even understand most of the tale-and allowed Aro to place a fingertip to his palm. Edward saw his memories of the werewolf flash in Aro's mind as he began to understand why he had come to him. When Aro removed his finger, he laughed.

"Well, Edward, I cannot say that I am absolutely surprised at this. First you fall in love with a human, your la tua cantante no less, and now you wish for us to stop the torture of a werewolf?" He chuckled and Edward grasped how foolish he was for asking for this request to be granted. Aro believed it was entirely necessary to lure in unsuspecting humans into the castle and kill them to drink their blood, the idea that he would have sympathy on his greatest and only enemy was laughable. "If I had not read it from your memories, I would have believed the request to be a joke. Really, Edward, you need to be sensible. The werewolf is here for one purpose, and that purpose does not include sumptuous accommodations."

"What is that purpose, may I ask?" Edward voiced his curiosity.

"No, you may not ask. It is not your place to know all the happenings in the Volturi and our reasoning for the happenings. Your place is to comprehend the commands given to you without question and to carry out your orders. Understood?" Aro nearly growled in annoyance.

Edward gave an answer in the form of a nod, his face a paper mache mask, molded especially for hiding emotions and thoughts from their onlooker. Aro waved a hand and turned away down the hall, his cloak moving like a black cloud waiting for the chance to burst. Edward had been dismissed.

**There are a bunch of pictures of Embrun, France on my profile if you are wondering what the place that Guiseppe is from looks like.**

**Mia**


	15. All

I do not own Twilight or any of it's characters

**I do not own Twilight or any of its characters.**

_**When we last left off…**_

"_No, you may not ask. It is not your place to know all the happenings in the Volturi and our reasoning for the happenings. Your place is to comprehend the commands given to you without question and to carry out your orders. Understood?" Aro nearly growled in annoyance._

_Edward gave an answer in the form of a nod, his face a paper__ mâché__ mask, molded especially for hiding emotions and thoughts from their onlooker. Aro waved a hand and turned away down the hall, his cloak moving like a black cloud waiting for the chance to burst. Edward had been dismissed._

**Now**

_**Seconds to minutes, Minutes to hours, Hours to Days**_

Edward Anthony Masen Cullen's throat had begun to burn asking for blood, but keeping down the pooling venom was manageable. He knew that if Aro found that he was self-starving himself, he would force him to drink. Edward knew that he would eventually have to drink from something, but by then it would not matter what was the vessel for the blood.

Demetri, Jane, and Felix passed him when he reached the door that led to the stairs of the dungeon; they smirked as they passed by him. He thought of other things instead of what their smiles could mean.

In the corner of the dark room where the dungeon stood, the young werewolf nursed his wounds. From what Edward could discern four welts, one on each arm and one on each leg shown by a hole ripped into the jeans, showed that his legs and arms had been broken several times and were healing the most recent ones. On his face, a large scar stretched from his left temple across his cheek onto the skin directly under his nostril. Three more fresh slashes ran from cheek to cheek over his nose, most likely made by a hand swiping across his face. Edward wondered why those three healed so slowly. A circular wound next to his heart made Edward presume that someone's hand had been stuck into his ribcage to either lift him up or to just torture him more. The wounds that bothered Edward the most, though, were the various bite marks running from the boy's shoulders to his wrists. This form of torture was more excruciating than Jane's pain inflicting, it was most likely the worst thing someone could do to a werewolf other than death.

Edward knew that Guiseppe had heard him come down; a werewolf had the superb hearing of a vampire. He made no sign that he did hear him and knew he was down with him except for his thoughts. The boy muttered over and over, "Damn vampires, you're all the same, filthy disgusting bloodsucking leeches, all the fucking same." His eyes closed and his mind drifted elsewhere as he fell asleep.

Edward had forgotten how vividly he could see other people's dreams, Bella was a blank slate to him and his family could not sleep. The sensation was the same as when Alice had a vision except more magical and he felt the same emotions as the dreamer. It was the closest thing Edward had to dreaming.

He watched everything from Guiseppe's eyes, everything normal. He was on a street in a French neighborhood facing towards a small two-story white house with a red tiled roof. The emotions he felt were panicked as he rushed into the house. In the kitchen, which had windows on the back of the house, Edward saw himself through Guiseppe's eyes. His eyes were red and he looked feral, with venom drooling down from his mouth.

He saw himself talk gently to a small girl in French. The girl looked a lot like Guiseppe, with dark hair and tanned skin. Her eyes were different though, a dark blue were unfamiliar next to Guiseppe's eyes. From what he could hear, there was a loud pounding in his ears as he felt Guiseppe becoming more frightened, he was coaxing the girl into coming outside and into the forest with him. There were many hiding places that she could use when he was playing with her brother. The girl, who must have been only five or six, nodded eagerly and took hold of Edward's outstretched clawed hand as he led the girl outside.

'No, Pulcherie!' Thought Guiseppe, he was unable to speak and Edward could feel his frustration and anger as he followed Edward and the girl. Edward believed that Pulcherie was the girl's name and that Guiseppe was related to her in some way, whether it was through family or friendship. Edward's guess was leaning toward younger sister.

Guiseppe followed Edward who was leading the girl into the small forest behind the house. They traveled deeper into the forest and soon they could not see the house or any civilization. Edward finally led the girl to a small clearing in the midst of the trees where Jane, Felix, and Demetri waited.

It was reasonable for Guiseppe think of this dream after three days of torture from Felix, Jane, and Demetri. Edward's three day story could not cancel the damage they inflicted on his body and mind.

What happened next was sudden and painful to watch. Edward pushed the small girl into the group of vampires and they almost immediately started clawing at her. The screams were terrible, but the other three vampires continued on torturing the girl as Edward watched and laughed. He could feel Guiseppe's urge to rip all of the vampires into shreds, his hands twitched to scratch the marble skin and his legs ached from not being able to run.

Pulcherie lay down, weakened by the torture of the vampires. Felix shouted for her to stand up, but Pulcherie could not even sit upright, let alone stand. Angered by the girl's continuation of her lying posture, Felix stuck his hands under her ribs-ripping through the skin and most likely various organs-and lifted her to her feet. Guiseppe's hands twitched even more and his legs felt almost numb with the throbbing to run forward while Pulcherie screamed and Guiseppe could not make a sound.

The blood flew like a river separating into small streams among the grass from Pulcherie's chest. Jane was the first to strike, her teeth sinking into her dark neck. The screams became louder from the pain of the fire the venom caused in the blood. Demetri grabbed her left hand and began to drink and Felix pulled his hands from Pulcherie's ribs with a sickening sucking sound and began to lick his own hands until he realized he could attain more blood by biting the girl's right ankle. Edward laughed and clapped his hands at the sight from the trees where he watched Pulcherie's eyes glaze over and her skin turn pale as a wedding napkin.

All the vampires disappeared and Edward felt himself in Guiseppe's body running forward to hold the girl, Pulcherie. "My sister, my sister. Goddamn vampires."

Edward felt himself jolt from the nightmare and back into his own body. Guiseppe's eyes flew open and his thoughts sighed in relief that it was only a dream, his sister was still alive and well in Embrun. He then glared at Edward, afraid that he would tell the other vampires where his sister was. He had been a fool for telling him where he had lived; Edward could easily track down his house and find his sister. The whole story he told him was a lie, he should have known. Vampires are clever, had he not been warned? Had he not learned firsthand? It is how he ended up in this mess, he did not know if he would be able to clean it up.

Guiseppe stared into Edward's eyes and Edward could not tell if he would trust him and talk freely. After what Felix, Demetri, and Jane had done to him and after he had had that dream he may be too afraid to.

"It was not a lie." Edward told him clearly. "You may never trust me again, but it is not a lie. At least believe that."

Guiseppe grunted in response and fell into a deep sleep too dark to have any dreams.

_**Seconds to Minutes, Minutes to Hours, Hours to Days, Days to Weeks**_

Four weeks had passed since he had come to Volterra's Castle. Two and a half weeks had passed since Edward last had blood flowing through his mouth from a living being.

_Sweet blood…_

His own thoughts were driving him mad and everything smelt of blood.

_Savory blood…_

Edward did not know if he could control himself the next time humans came into the castle and blood was spilt.

_Wonderful, rich blood…_

Even Guiseppe's blood was tempting him…

_Enticingly, tempting blood…_

Venom pooled into his mouth at the thought of the red fluid blood.

_Thick, syrupy blood…_

What was that smell? Was he imagining it again?

_Alluring blood…_

No, he could distinctly smell it coming from the throne room. Heidi must be here.

_Relieving blood…_

He did not bother restraining himself for a few more days, he ran like a leaf in a tornado.

_Bewitching blood…_

Doors slammed past him. He was a mouse running for cheese in a maze; only this maze had a neon sign pointing to the cheese.

_Heavenly blood…_

All his senses were blocked out except for his sense of smell. He could see nothing but red, he could hear nothing but the pulse of the blood flowing through the vessel's circulatory system. He could only taste the ash in his mouth that begged for blood to wet it so that he may swallow it and soothe his burning throat. He could feel nothing but the wind flow past him as he began to reach his cheese.

_Luscious blood…_

His siren was right in front of him, he could not wait any longer. He grabbed the soft object and broke through the pestering layer that separated him from his ambrosia.

_Blood…_

It was not enough, he needed more. Quick as lightning and just as dangerous, he grabbed one body after another until he was satiated.

_Blood…_

With his fuel newly restored, his senses began to return one by one. He felt warm liquid over the pads of his fingers, his palms, clothes, arms, and face. He could taste the bittersweet taste of blood mixed with the salty venom. He could hear the screams of those who were still alive but not for long and the laughs of the vampires around them as they toyed with there food. He could smell the tears and the sweat of the humans whose lives were taken. He could see the pale faces of the dead and the undead.

Edward lifted his gaze from his blood soaked hands to Aro's. He was smiling at Edward, the smile you see on a teacher whose favorite student has passed an exam. Edward looked back down at the body that was before his feet. Moments ago it had not mattered who it had been, but now it was the only thing.

The body was that of a teenage girl, about fourteen or fifteen. Her clear blue eyes stared at him with frozen fright and her hands were still positioned in clawed motions. He could not remember her trying to claw at him to get away, but then he could not remember anything but getting to the blood. Her inky black hair was long and splayed behind her and it looked like a shock had gone through her to make her hair stand on end that way. Blood trickled from her mouth like a leaky faucet that needed to be fixed. She was very beautiful, and Edward knew she must have had someone that loved her. A mother, a father, a brother, a sister, a boyfriend, any of those people would miss her.

Too young, too beautiful, too loved. Now, she was too gone.

Edward did not remember running back to his room into the shower. He wanted to, it would be so much better than to remember the girl's face staring at him with those eyes. Water trickled over his body, he had not bothered to take off his clothes, but now he ripped them off and scratched ferociously at his skin where the blood had dried. The rust colored flakes floated with the water down the drain, but even when not one flake was left on his skin he still felt dirty. His white skin did not look white and he could not erase the memory of his scarlet skin from his mind.

_**Seconds to Minutes, Minutes to Hours, Hours to Days, Days to Weeks, Weeks to Months**_

Two months after his first drink in years, Edward walked the halls of the castle. His most recent drinks were forced, but the moment he was satisfied, he ran from the throne room and into his shower as fast as he was able to.

The hall ended and Edward had to turn otherwise he would be staring at a blank wall. Edward could hear voices where the turn was and he realized it was a conversation between Aro and Fausto.

"…his voice?" Aro asked, but Edward was only able to catch the last two words of the question so he was not able to understand it.

"Yes, I have it perfected." Fausto answered, his voice was full of arrogance and pride.

"Excellent, you may carry out your duty now." Aro instructed and Edward could hear Fausto running down the corridor to do what Aro had bid of him.

Aro then turned to Edward, asking what it was he needed through his mind.

"Does Fausto need an aid with his duty?" Edward asked innocently.

Aro's voice was harsh and commanding, "No, your presence in Fausto's task will only be a burden and prolong its fulfillment. Now go check on your werewolf."

As Aro's cloak floated away with him, Edward wondered why so many questions were being unanswered and why everyone was blocking his mind so that Edward would not be able to see what was going on.

_**Seconds to Minutes**_

Edward sat across the werewolf in his place against the wall. Guiseppe had not spoken to him since the first time he was tortured by Jane, Felix, and Demetri, Edward did not expect him to, but he missed the normal company. Edward knew he did not deserve it anyway; he was no different from the others. He had taken just as many innocent and young lives as they had without thinking.

That day, Guiseppe had surprised him. "You said that you did not lie. If you did not lie, answer this question for me. What is love like?"

Edward looked at the boy's face. Scars that continued to heal showed skin as pink as the insides of a grapefruit, and bite marks that would never heal showed an unnatural white against his strange pale tan skin.

"Love," Edward thought about it. How could he answer this question? He thought about how he would and just voiced his thoughts. "Is strong. I did not know love from 1901 to 2005. When I finally discovered the feeling and what it felt like, I found that there really was not way to describe it. Love for me is undying. It is when every decision is based on her safety, or her opinion. Her safety always comes first. If anything happens to her, it is a physical blow to me. Just being away from her is agonizing. Peeled skin with alcohol poured on it barely compares to the feeling I had when I found that she was gone. The pain never goes away.

"When I see her smile, I know that something in this world is right. Love for me is when nothing else matters but the one I love, her safety and her being comes before all other things, even my own existence and happiness. That is what I believe love is." The words fell from Edward's mind through his mouth, but that was not what he believed love was. Love was indescribable. Words could not describe the emotions that coursed through him when he saw Bella smile, when he saw her laugh, when he saw her cry, when he saw her scream in pain, or when he created that smile. "But among all of the things that I just said about love, none of them are true. Love is indescribable. You only know what love is like after you have felt it."

Guiseppe inhaled the words from the air. He knew Edward was right, he could not understand the feeling. He had never been in love. Sometimes Edward thought that it would be better without love. But life without love or Bella was nearly indescribable.

_**Seconds to Minutes, Minutes to Hours, Hours to Days, Days to Weeks, Weeks to Months**_

Edward had been drinking from humans for eight months now and he still could not look at the faces of those he killed. Aro tried to cheer him up, giving him ideas of how to have fun with the humans before you drank, but the ideas made him feel ill. When he saw the images of Aro doing his own ideas to humans he had to leave.

Straight from out of the shower with new clothes, Edward walked through the halls that had windows overlooking the city. He paused at a window and stared. He wished he could be free again to travel. He had not run through anything but halls for months. He had not played the piano for what felt like years. He had not seen her smile in what felt like centuries, and when the memory of her upturned lips and chocolate brown eyes staring into his made him ashamed of himself. Perhaps she would move on. Yes, she certainly would. She would die of old age and she would have forgotten about him. Bella would never have to know what a monster he had become.

He was almost glad he would never see her again, but not quite.

Edward turned away from the window. The sight of freedom seared his eyes. The face he turned to was Fausto. He was traveling quickly down the hall; clearly he had somewhere to go. His mind told Edward he had orders from Aro.

"Where are you leaving to, Fausto, in such a hurry?" Because of the many unanswered questions he had received from Aro and Fausto, Edward did not fully expect a response.

Fausto grinned toward Edward and was gone.

_**Seconds to Minutes, Minutes to Hours, Hours to Days**_

It was the last day of Edward's break, the next day he would be stepping down the stairs to greet Guiseppe and if he was lucky he would be able to answer curious questions to pass time. Guiseppe was still cautious, but he became just as bored as Edward did.

Edward's fingers moved on imaginary keys making sounds that were not there. Edward had already memorized each key's individual sound. With his memory, he could compose a symphony if he wanted to. It drove him crazy not to actually be able to hear the sound, though.

He was midway through Für Elise when Fausto knocked at his door. He entered with a grin on his face that marked a devastating event for Edward, but his thoughts were blocked. Aro had been teaching him.

"Aro wishes to speak with you." Fausto waited for Edward to get up and stand next to him at the door before he began to lead him through the hallways. Fausto received pleasure in seeing Edward's features distort in confusion and annoyance as he lead him. Edward knew the way perfectly well and Fausto knew this also, there was obviously a hidden reason for him to be showing the way.

When Edward entered the throne room, he could smell a human. Not the leftover scents from days before, but an alive human. It may have just been the newest secretary talking with Aro, so Edward shrugged off the strangeness and focused on Aro who had begun to speak.

"Good afternoon, Edward. Did you feed well the other day?" Edward nodded slightly and Aro smiled delighted. "Delightful. I have another assignment for you, Edward. You are no longer required to go down to watch the werewolf for four days out of the week, you only need to go for one day." Edward raised a questioning eyebrow and Aro continued. "You see, Edward, when I first met Jane and Alec they were both very small and I wished to have them be older when I had them changed. Unfortunately my plans were ruined and everything went out of my control and I was forced to change them as they died at a young age.

"I learned many things from that instance. I learned that I need to take more control of a situation. Now I am putting my teachings into action. The other day, while walking around Volterra, Fausto came upon a recently born baby girl. He brought her to me and I could not read her mind, much like your Isabella. We had Jane try her power and Demetri try his power, but neither succeeded in using it on the infant." His eyes laughed at the memory and his thoughts turned to the puzzling minds of Isabella and the infant. Aro loved challenges.

Edward was becoming bored with this long tale and did not see how it was relevant with his existence in the Volturi Guard, "So what is it you require me to do, sir?"

Aro's eyes sparkled as he explained the rest of his fully thought out plan. "Well, noticeably the infant is much to young to be changed into a vampire so instead of leaving it in the human world where it may be burned at the stake or some other misfortune that may occur, we are going to watch the child carefully as it grows up. Being the newest guard and the one with the most control, we cannot give you large tasks until you are fully trained and adapted to the Guard, so we are putting you in charge of caring for and watching the child grow and develop."

Basically, Edward was the Volturi's new baby sitter. Edward was perfectly alright with his new task, it was much better than seeing the aftermaths of the vampires' torturing of Guiseppe.

"What is the child's name?" Aro waved a hand dismissively.

"You may name it whatever you choose. The child is with Alcee in the lobby, proper accommodations for the child will be delivered to your room as you retrieve the infant."

Edward walked down the halls to the lobby, he rarely ever went there but he never forgot which way it was after he came with Bella. He had only seen Alcee once or twice before but they made no contact or attempt at friendliness so it was forgotten. He knew that she was the one the other guard, Leone, had been so protective of and had been almost begging Aro to change her.

The reason Leone was on the guard was because he could put images into anyone's mind, causing them to be trapped in that vision. He could put in his own memory of the change and when they are distracted by the visualization, he may do what ever he pleases to them.

She may have been beautiful for a human, but since the time Edward met Bella every woman was always second best compared to her. Alcee's straight golden red hair contrasted with her pale skin, she was not allowed to leave the castle. Her grey eyes were the same color as the single cloud on a sky blue day.

It was what was in Alcee's arms that caught Edward's attention. It was a small bundle containing a newborn baby girl. She had a light fuzz of hair on the top of her head that could be recognized as brown hair. When she blinked, her green eyes shone like glo-stix.

Alcee handed him the bundle and the baby shivered when Edward touched her cheek.

"Do you have any idea what you will name her?" Alcee asked, not in the least bit hesitant. She had grown unafraid of vampires in the last year. She had even accepted that it was probable that they would kill her, but Leone denied it every time she brought it up.

Edward could not look away from the glo-stick eyes, but he nodded all the same. He did not even have to think about the question. "Of course. Her name is Sage Marie Cullen."

**Wow, long chapter.**

**Mia**


	16. Arrogance

Nothing I own

**Nothing I own.**

_**When we last left off…**_

_Alcee handed him the bundle and the baby shivered when Edward touched her cheek. _

"_Do you have any idea what you will name her?" Alcee asked, not in the least bit hesitant. She had grown unafraid of vampires in the last year. She had even accepted that it was probable that they would kill her, but Leone denied it every time she brought it up._

_Edward could not look away from the glo-stick eyes, but he nodded all the same. "Of course. Her name is Sage Marie Cullen."_

**Now**

_**Seconds to Minutes**_

The room looked unnatural. The cause was not the absence of the single bed, Edward had never cared for it, his body was made so that he was comfortable anywhere.

The reason for the bizarreness in his room, were the pieces of new furniture it held. Edward had known that the infant's presence would bring a new light to the castle, but he did not mean it to be literal. The pink and yellow crib glowed with the light coming from the window and the plastic duck mobile hanging over the crib reflected the sunshine all over the room. The changing table and newly acquired dresser showed ducklings following their mother, each one of them smiling on their way. A large duck shaped rug laid covering the entire middle

All of the pastel colors against the monotonous gray stone looked like a failed attempt to make a baby's room a little more cheerful. The job was futile; there was no element that could compose the Volturi Castle into a happy place or a place to raise a child.

Edward sighed and strode over to the crib, the same place his former bed had sat. The new occupant of the duck painted container stared up at the glittering new mobile. When Edward stuck his head over the baby, blocking her view from the shining ducks, she closed her eyes. His new shadow signaled to her a time to rest.

He wished that it would not be difficult for her. He knew that it would be. A sinister castle where vampires wished you dead for their pleasure and satisfaction is not the ideal home for a child.

_**Seconds to Minutes, Minutes to Hours, Hours to Days, Days to Weeks**_

Edward wished they could put a changing table in the dungeon; it would make it a little brighter. The contrast of the baby room where Sage smiled and played with her newly discovered hands and this torture chamber where a wolf with multiple scars and no hope sat, was absolutely miserable.

"You haven't told me about her. What's she like?" Edward felt absolutely horrid and traitorous whenever he came down to be with Guiseppe. While Edward was raising a smiling and bouncing child, Guiseppe was left down in the dungeon, being tortured by Jane, Demetri, and Felix. Edward had read from Guiseppe's mind that the three were not hurting him as much, an order from Aro as he was afraid they may possibly kill him or cause him to sink into depression so deep that it would cause his death, but even for these facts, Edward could not help but feel he betrayed his only friend at Volterra Castle.

"Are you ever going to answer?" Edward nodded.

"She's very beautiful, with such green eyes you are almost blinded. She barely has any hair, but what there is now tells that when she is older it will be thick and brown. She's a little underweight, but I do not suppose that is anything to worry about." An image of Sage watching her fingers carefully and then her eyes widening when one moved popped into his mind. "She absolutely loves to play with her hands. Nothing has been able to compete with the excitement she attains when a finger attached to her twitches."

Guiseppe watched Edward and the admiration in his eyes as he spoke about this infant girl, Sage her name was. He chuckled, "So, you're a father now, huh?"

Edward's eyebrows shot up at the assumption. He had never thought himself as a father with Sage, only a caretaker until she was old enough. The only moment he had ever thought of himself as a father was when Bella had told him she was pregnant.

Why had he named her Sage? Now as Edward thought about it, Edward thought it had been a horrible mistake. Naming her after a child of Bella's seemed like stealing a name. The fact that he was gave her Marie as a middle name made him feel absolutely disgusting for giving her Bella's middle name! Her name was only and illusion. An illusion that could make him feel like he was still with Bella, helping her raise their child. He was only lying to himself and misusing Bella's name and the names she wanted for her own child, not an imposter. He was trying to relieve, but his attempts only caused him pain and, strangely, happiness.

The thought she reminded him of how she could easily forgive anyone and give away her life for anyone. Bella gave away her life unthinkingly. He needed to stop thinking of what he thought she would want. That is what almost killed them both. He had imagined that she would have easily forgotten him and thought nothing of him leaving her. He was wrong, perhaps he was wrong again. He did not doubt that he very well could be mistaken.

Bella would want an orphan to have parents, or at least a father. She would give it the best name she could think of. Edward did that, he had given Sage the best names he could have thought of, one of Bella's and another of Bella's idea. She would have been ashamed of him if she found out he did not act as a father for a child with neither a mother nor a father.

"Yes, I suppose I am a father."

_**Seconds to Minutes, Minutes to Hours, Hours to Days, Days to Weeks, Weeks to Months**_

Six and a half months old with ten pale fingers and two sparkling eyes following each of them with her their pupils. Sage sat with both legs spread out and her back slouching forward. She placed both of her hands on the ground between her legs and in front of her baby fat rounded tummy.

Edward placed a small round red plush ball on top of the palms. "Ball." He told her.

She stared back at him with round eyes, her mouth already open to attempt her latest word. "Wawl."

Edward grinned at her try, even if she had not succeeded, the next time he tried to teach her wall she would be able to say it. He gently rubbed her full head of brown fuzz. The motion distracted her into throwing the ball up in the air and bouncing off of her nose before falling onto the floor. Her eyes squinted as the plushy material made impact on her nose. When the ball hit the floor and rolled away.

Sage looked up at her father with wide eyes and an agape mouth. 'Did you see that?' her expression asked him what her words could not. Edward stared back with the same wide eyes but with a closed mouth, wondering if Sage would cry out from surprise.

Seeing her father's foolish expression, Sage began to giggle. Her curved mouth and large cheeks that made her eyes squint created a smile on Edward's face. Edward could not realize it, but they had the exact same smile. He did know, however, that he wanted to see it as much as possible. Edward swung Sage into the air and she laughed wildly as he held her in the air and ran in circles on the duck rug, he went at human pace not wanting to hurt her health.

A sneeze outside the door caught Edward's attention and he stopped. Sage pouted at the discontinuation of her game, but her attention was moved to Alcee's form standing in the door frame. The skin around her eyes was red and puffy and it matched the tip of her nose. A strange wheezing sound was made as she breathed through her stuffy nose.

"Are you alright, Alcee?" Edward inquired as she took Sage into her arms.

She coughed into her sleeve before answering. "No." Her voice was scratchy and Edward could hear the phlegm in her throat. "But Aro sees no reason to let me get better, so I'm stuck working. I'll try to make minimal contact with Sage, does that window open?"

Edward nodded his head and punched the glass. "See?"

Alcee rolled her eyes, "Go watch your dog." Her bright grey eyes smiled before she gave another sneeze.

On his way to the dungeon, Edward could not help but worry about Sage. She was very fragile, and since she had not been breastfed, she had fewer antibodies than most children. He pleaded with God to keep Alcee's virus from spreading.

_**Seconds to Minutes, Minutes to Hours, Hours to Days, Days to Weeks**_

There are over a billion human beings in this world. So while God is so preoccupied with all of these people, why would He listen to a request from one of the damned?

He did not answer Edward's call. Sage acquired the cold the next week, when Alcee began to feel better. Her nose began to run and attained that pink tinge. She coughed a lot at night and when Edward attempted to feed her, she would only shake her head. He was once able to force the spoon into her mouth, but when he reached to get another spoonful, she spit it up and coated her bib with apple pear sauce.

A day after Edward had noticed the cold; he left Sage in Alcee's welcoming care so that he would be able to confront Aro about her health.

"I do not consider it necessary for you to take her to a hospital. It is only the common cold, Alcee had it last week and she is perfectly fine now." Aro looked bored upon his seat. Edward had politely requested to take Sage to the nearest hospital for a check-up and to possibly obtain prescribed antibodies so that her cold would not develop into pneumonia. Obviously, Aro did not think the same way.

"Yes, I understand that, but, Aro, you must comprehend that Alcee is an adult, unlike Sage who is an infant and does not even have a sufficient amount of antibodies." Edward knew his logic was lost on Aro, for Aro believed that when you were born a human you were the same all through your life. All humans are the same; some just have skills that can be used for his guard.

Aro's stern glance his Edward's pleading eyes. "Edward, as a part of the Volturi, I have lived for a very long while. I do not need information on humans." Edward read his thoughts as he spoke these words. They told Edward that Aro knew he was only trying to escape the castle by blowing a small illness out of proportion, Aro knew that Edward was only trying to fool him by using his ignorance of humans to use to his advantage and try to explain nonsense.

Edward could have punched a wall. Aro was not understanding or listening. He was thinking completely idiotic ideas that made no sense.

He calmed himself down and answered to Aro's statement. "I understand, Aro. Please forgive my thoughtlessness, but when her cold develops into pneumonia, you will have to allow me to take her to the hospital. If you do not, you will either change her while she is six months old or watch her die."

"Is this a threat?" Aro's eyes blazed as he stood from his seat.

Edward's dark maroon eyes looked into the inferno of Aro's eyes. "No, it is a promise. Good day, Aro."

_**Seconds to Minutes, Minutes to Hours, Hours to Days, Days to Weeks**_

Over the next week, Edward watched as Sage's cold became worse. She barely ate anything at all and would cry in between coughing fits and sneezes. Her nose almost seemed permanently blocked up along so she was compelled to breath through her mouth which created a strange wheezing sound because of the phlegm in her windpipe. Never did Sage smile.

On the day Edward was supposed to watch Guiseppe, Sage had developed a burning fever. Her breathing had become later and Edward was terrified that the fever may affect her brain. When Alcee came to watch Sage, Edward refused to leave. Alcee looked over Sage and then called Leone. He came only seconds after he was called and he immediately checked Alcee over for physical injuries with his eyes.

"Is everything alright?" Leone asked when he found nothing wrong with Alcee.

Alcee shook her head and her red braid swung across her back, rubbing her neck. "No, look at this child." She pulled him over to Sage's crib where Edward remained trying desperately to break the fever.

Edward had thought about asking Leone to tell Aro that he was not lying or trying to escape, he only wanted Sage to be safe. He had immediately changed his plan to have him determine that the baby was in horrible condition and to go tell Aro without any persuasion from Edward. If Edward asked him, it would be inside his memories and if Aro touched him to see if he was part of this 'scheme' to escape, he would be assumed to be a part of Edward's plan.

From feeling her head and hearing her strange erratic breathing, Leone agreed with Alcee that the infant was in critical condition. He told them that he would come back to the room after he spoke with Aro of the child's condition.

Alcee sat on a white rocking chair with hand painted ducks waddling along the top of the back and watched Edward as he did everything he knew, and could do, to help Sage break her fever. She had no experience in any sort of taking care of sick. She had grown up in a foster home with only one mother. She had rarely been sick, and her mother had died of a car accident. When she had been sick, she did not remember how her mother had taken care of her, human memories blur. If she went up to Edward, she knew she would only be a hindrance. She would constantly be asking questions and be hurting Sage's chance of recovery instead of improving it.

Edward knew this too.

After what felt like hours, Leone finally came running through the door. "Aro has granted Edward permission to take the child to nearest hospital accompanied by Jane and Demetri." Leone and Edward knew the reasons for the choice of these two vampires. If he was trying to run away, Demetri could easily track him and Jane would torture him and while he was withering in pain, they would both drag them back.

It did not matter who was accompanying him, though. The point was that he was allowed to take Sage to a hospital, where she would be able to receive proper medical care.

Edward picked up Sage, wrapped tightly in a blue flower printed wool blanket, and told Leone and Alcee, "I owe you two, thank you so much."

Before Edward could make it down the hall, Alcee shouted out towards him.

"You need to go to my desk! Get the documents, birth certificate and such!" She knew he heard her.

Setting Sage gently down on the rolling desk chair, Edward quickly searched through the files. Alcee had foraged citizen papers for both he and Sage along with both of their birth certificates and insurance papers. He grabbed all of them, unsure of which ones he would need, and ran towards the entrance while holding Sage.

Jane and Demetri both waited for Edward at the entrance with bored expressions on their faces. When Jane saw Edward, she smiled. She sent him a short burst of pain that would have made him grimace if he had not already been so preoccupied. She frowned and increased the pain level. He grimaced this time and glared at her as she smiled back, the grin a cross between angelic innocence and demonic pride.

"We need to go, fast." Edward told both of them. Jane went back to her bored facial expression and Demetri only began to lead them both to a sleek black BMW. Demetri slid into the front seat, Jane sat passenger, and Edward sat in the back with Sage. Her breaths were only short gasps. He did not object to the seating arrangement, Demetri knew where they were going.

They reached the hospital in four minutes. Edward immediately headed towards the driveway marked, EMERGENCY, with ambulances reflecting moonlight with their clean sides. The glass doors swung past him, barely making contact with his skin, Jane and Demetri followed closely behind, slipping through the doors before they had a chance to close.

A young woman, perhaps nineteen or twenty, at the desk sat before a computer, her fingers skimming across the keyboard, only putting enough pressure to make a letter, her metallic blue eyes flickered over the illuminated screen. She had thin light brown hair pulled into a pony tail behind her. "Give a name and take a seat." She told him in perfect Italian, her eyes not leaving the screen.

"Edward Cullen." She nodded and waved a hand over to a shabby sitting area. Edward became quickly aggravated by her lack of concern. Sage's breaths were too short to wait for help, they had already waited long enough and her forehead seared his hand. "Listen, this baby has pneumonia and needs immediate care."

The woman sighed and looked straight to Sage, ignoring Edward's inhuman beauty. Her eyes widened immediately and she clicked a button next to her desk. She spoke into an intercom above the button quickly in Italian. Seconds later, doctors rushed out with a small rolling bed. Edward handed Sage over to them and they rushed away with her. He began to follow them into the hallway leading to the multiple rooms.

"Excuse me, sir?" The woman shouted for him. He turned around to look at her, annoyed. "I need you to tell me the necessary information about your, daughter?" She asked, he nodded.

She looked at him, purposefully not in a checking out manner. "Are you the biological father?" Edward paused, unsure of what the forged documents made him. He shook his head in a negative reply, if they needed a blood transplant he would be unable to give it to them. "Do you know who they are?" He shook his head again. "Can you tell me your insurance information?"

"I'm afraid I can't, but I have the required papers with me." He handed the crinkled snow white pages to her. She frowned, unsure why someone would carry these sorts of papers on hand, but shrugged it off as none of her business.

"Mr. Cullen?" He nodded. "It says here that you have only recently become an Italian citizen, in which case I will need you to papers. Since you are the parent, I need you to sign these papers as well." She slid a clipboard and pen over the counter. Edward noticed a plain silver ring on the ring finger of her left-hand. He smiled and took the clipboard and pen to a brown chair in the seat area and began to fill out the forms.

Five minutes later, he slid the brown clipboard back along with the pen back over the desk. She nodded thanks.

"Excuse me? Do you know when I will be able to see my daughter?"

"Now, if you'd like. She's in room 19." I nodded and muttered thanks. I looked in the waiting room for Demetri and Jane, but there was only Demetri.

I stared at him with my eyebrows scrunched, almost touching. He shrugged. "Jane was thirsty, went to grab something to drink." I nodded and pushed passed the metal doors into the hallway.

A fairly large window faced the room Sage was being held in. Edward and Demetri both stared at the small body, various tubes were monitoring her breathing and she had a nebulizer over her mouth. Edward remembered nearly thirty-five years ago when instead of a nebulizer, doctors would use tents over the children to help their breathing.

A doctor came up to him, he had grey-blue eyes, the color of a stormy sea. His hair was the color of oak wood. "Are you the father of," he looked over his clipboard. "Sage Marie Cullen?"

Edward nodded, "Yes."

"Alright. My name is Doctor Bilsien." He held out his hand to shake and Edward took it, careful not to crush any of the fragile bones. Doctor Bilsien took back his hand and took a pen from behind his hear and scanned his clipboard. "You were able to get to here in time. She is has pulse oxineter, intravenous, and a nebulizer. She should be able to leave the hospital in maybe, one to two weeks depending on her reaction to the medication." He nodded, concluding that that was all he was required to say.

"So, may I go in and see her?" Edward asked.

The doctor's eyes went up in surprise at forgetting such obvious information. "Oh yes, of course. Go right on ahead, but be careful with the machines." He nodded and entered the room. Demetri stayed in the hallway and watched from the window.

As he looked at this child with not parents, he began to think of Bella. The memory of her lying helplessly and looking so breakable in the hospital bed in Phoenix still haunted his mind. He saw how similar Sage was to Bella, not in appearance for the two looked nothing alike, but poetically.

He sat down on the chair beside her and held the small pudgy hand. She was barely seven months old, Edward could not be more thankful for what Leone did, even if it was not necessarily for him.

Edward allowed himself to think of Bella and the child he would never be able to meet. He felt horrible for leaving her alone again, but she could not be hurt. He would not allow it. He thought of her screaming of fire when they were in the ballet room. He thought of her shivering as they traveled in the tunnels to stand before the Volturi. He thought of her in Jacob's memories, looking as dead as he had ever seen her, feeling pain so deep that she could not feel it at all.

His memories changed to when she first saw him sparkling. The sensation he felt holding her safe in his arms as he ran through the forest. The feeling of clutching her to him as they danced together in the gym at prom was still fresh in his mind. The look of completion on her face when she saved him from himself, the perfect lines on her face, the warmth of her body, the feelings of remorse she held for everyone, the love she gave to him unthinkingly and his heart that she held, they were all reasons that he was here in Volterra.

Sage's eyes opened a fraction and he smiled gently back and whispered, "You will be fine." She grinned such a small smile, that he could barely see it under the nebulizer.

He was her father and she was his daughter.

**I was not being anti-God; Edward was just depressed so I had to express his feelings. Just clearing that up for those who think I'm pro-science. As some people know (cough JAG) I am not. Good times.**

**Mia **


	17. Zigzag

**Nothing owned here. Look somewhere else.**

_**Previously…**_

_Sage's eyes opened a fraction and he smiled gently back and whispered, "You will be fine." She grinned such a small smile, that he could barely see it under the nebulizer._

_He was her father and she was his daughter._

**Now**

If a random woman on the street was asked if she ever thought that her parents were not human beings, or if she had thought that the fact that they were human beings was weird, she would most likely answer no. She grew up with them; even in her farthest memory banks she could not remember them being anything other than a human being. This actuality was not unnatural because everyone else she knew was also a human being.

Sage grew up the same way as most people. The only differences were that Sage grew up in a vampire world. The reason most people are afraid of vampires are because they were brought up being told that vampires are scary and will kill you. Even though this is true, Sage was brought up knowing that her father, or Leone, would never hurt her. When she discovered that Alcee was human she thought it was a little strange. What was even stranger was that she was human and most of the vampires she saw everyday wanted to kill her and drink her blood, except for her dad.

_**Seconds to Minutes, Minutes to Hours, Hours to Days, Days to Weeks, Weeks to Months, Months to Years, Years to Decades**_

Sage Marie Cullen stared at the shelves. How could one person write this many books? Of course, he could never have written all of these.

She pulled one from the shelf. The top of the pages was dusty and when she brushed the layer off, her finger came away grey. The pages were yellowed and faded but the ink still shone black as oil. The cover was leather that was so worn that it was soft. Gold lettering read, Tanya, Denali. Sage thought this was a very strange name and placed the book back onto the space it had left on the shelf. None of these books were like the ones that Alcee and Leone gave to her, those were about humans and strange adventures they went on. Alcee once gave her a book named, Dracula, the comparison to the vampire character and her father was hilarious.

"Sage," she turned her head to her father. He had moved from his place on the couch where he had been watching her choose a book to the door frame. "Do not leave this library, alright? I'll be right back with Alcee. Do you have your inhaler?

Her hand patted her sweater pocket. "Yes."

He grinned towards her and bowed his head. "I feel gratified that you have listened to my reminder to bring it." He lifted his red eyes to her giggling glo-stick colored ones. His red ones hardened again. "But please, Sage, do not leave."

She nodded and moved a couple of paces to her right to a new section of books. The soft thud of the door hitting the frame echoed in the spacious room and she knew she was alone.

After thirteen years, Sage was still rarely left alone in Volterra Castle. She knew many of the guards' faces and after she had passed them, her father would tell her who they were. Everywhere she went she was either with Alcee or her father. Sometimes when she was with Alcee, Leone would join them.

Another book was taken from it's shelf by her hand. This one was very thin and it was titled, Bree, Forks. She flipped through the pages and found nothing worth while. She gave a frustrated sigh and placed the book in its rightful place, her other hand already reaching for another book.

"So you don't care for little Bree's story?" Sage jumped and spun tightly to look where her back had been facing. The vampire was large with bulking muscles. The cropped short hair was colored darkly and his skin looked strange, a cross between paleness and olive skin. His red eyes gleamed playfully and his teeth looked menacing. Her father never stared at her like this.

"Excuse me?" She finally was able to stutter.

He chuckled at her confusion. "Do you think these stories are fictional?" Her face still held her confused gaze except her eyebrows scrunched closer together. "Yes?" He laughed loudly this time. "You silly child, these are the archives. All these stories are files of most of the vampires of the world. I say most because we cannot be there the moment a human is changed."

Sage eyes widened; it was no wonder almost all of the stories were horrible. The characters killed relentlessly and savagely because they were real.

His grin widened. "If you are wondering, I killed her. That Bree girl you have no interest in."

Her eyebrows crinkled and her mouth gave a deep frown. "Why?"

The vampire in front of her laughed. "She had broken the law; it is our job as the Volturi Guard to enforce the law in the vampire world. No law, no order."

"How? How was it broken?" Sage's mind raced, but her voice came from her lips strangely clear and firm.

"She was part of an army created by a psycho vampire. Edward's father, your father's father, wanted to spare her life, but neither Jane nor I would stand for it."

She could no longer hold her voice steady. "My father was there?" The words came out as a gasp.

"Yes. This was before he had come to join us and was living with his coven. He watched the girl scream and burn into ashes."

"That's enough, Felix." She spun on her heel towards the voice that she almost lost her balance. Edward Anthony Masen Cullen stood in the doorway beside him was Leone and behind both of them was Alcee. Edward's and Leone's faces both looked violent, a lightning storm swarmed in their red iris' like a beehive. Alcee looked concern, almost like a mother, for Sage.

"Ah, Edward. Today I have learned that you keep your daughter very uninformed about your past and the outside world. I start to wonder if she thinks that vampires and humans live together in harmony." Felix laughed and pushed by them, giving Alcee a deep cut with his nail. She hissed in pain, but by then Felix had already left.

"Damn it." Leone muttered. He shoved her into the library and Edward closed the door.

"The door most likely won't affect the smell from seeping out, but it will give you some warning when it bangs open and when another inmate of the castle comes for a snack." Edward told them. Alcee nodded, already used to the procedure after thirteen years of living in a place where receiving a slice from a paper would endanger her life. Leone, on the other hand, immediately tore a strip from his cloak and began to wrap her upper arm.

Sage stood watching the scene from the corner of the library. Her father rushed towards her after he made sure that her arm was bandaged enough to block most of the scent.

"Did he hurt you at all?" Edward asked his daughter. She had grown up quickly, thirteen years had passed speedily but he had enjoyed all of the moments they shared. He found her questioning and insightful nature fascinating and adored her love for everything. She was stubborn, determined and, when needed, completely devoted to a cause. Edward now scanned over her body by turning over her wrists and lifting her thick reddish-brown hair so that he may inspect hidden areas. He could not smell nor see any cuts or impalements on her body but Felix could be creative when he chose to be.

She solemnly shook her head. "Dad, what have you not told me?"

Edward did not bother lying, she read even him too well to see through his lies, so he decided just to prolong the discussion. "Sage, there are so many things I have not told you, but I swear I will tell you whatever it is you want to hear when I get back. Agreed?"

She pursed her lips and gazed at him with narrow eyes. "Even where you are leaving to?"

Nodding his head he held out his hand. She grabbed it and they shook.

_**Seconds to Minutes, Minutes to Hours, Hours to Days**_

"Leone, you must understand the concept of the game. You are trying to attain the most matches out of the three of us. Not throw away all of your cards." Alcee slowly explained. He smiled slyly and touched her thigh, his hand so swift it was only a blur. Alcee giggled.

Sage rolled her eyes and propped her head on her palm with her elbow resting on her knee of her crossed legs. The three of them were sitting on the floor of her small room. It contained a single twin bed across from which stood a chest of drawers. In the opposite corner by the broken window—this posed a great nuisance when it rained—a white rocking chair swayed when the wind pushed it carefully. Ducks rocked along with the chair on the top of the back.

Her free hand slapped down the cards and she stretched out her legs. "Stop bickering and flirting, I won." It was the morning of the day after her father had left. He should have been back by now. She stood up and looked toward the door. "Do you know when my dad will be back?"

Leone's eyes broke away from Alcee's and looked up to Sage. "An hour or so." He noticed the direction of her stare. "You'd better not be thinking of going out to look for him. He would be so enraged with me I would only be a puff of smoke."

"Of course not." Sage had barely begun to understand why her father never wanted her to roam around the castle alone, but even that small bit of comprehending made her want to never leave her father's side.

She turned her head toward the shattered window. "Do you want to go outside?"

In a flash of movement, Leone stood and held out a hand to help Alcee stand. "Where ever we are makes no difference. Alcee?"

Alcee walked over to the window and stared unto the large courtyard below. The sun reflected off of dew soaked plants, but she knew it would not last. Dark ominous clouds had already begun to crowd for space in the sky. "Sure, we will soak up as much sun as we can before it begins to rain again."

Sage smiled and they were soon among the intricately planned rose bushes and plants with Italian and French names she were not sure what they meant. The humid summer heat and read-to-burst clouds felt good on her skin after being in the cold castle. At the moment, she was facing a particular bush of white roses. Alcee and Leone watched her from a raised porch by the garden.

The petals were soft and could barely be felt from under the tips of her hands. The texture reminded her of wet silk. She reached for the stem and pulled to take the flower. A nasty thorn pierced her index finger; a red dot of blood raised and gave her pale finger a clown nose. Sage laughed at her own idiocy and sucked the drop; it tasted like salt and rust. The taste made her wish for mouthwash.

Diamond-encrusted hands came from behind her and pulled the flower from the bush. She turned to see her sparkling father who bowed on one knee and held up the flower to her hands. "For you, my lady."

Sage giggled and took the flower. She smelled the sweet scent and curtsied, lowering the flower to the sides of her jeans as she held up her imaginary skirt. "Thank you, dear kind gentlemen. A wonderful gift you have bestowed upon me."

He grabbed her hand and spun her gracefully. "Nothing less for a princess."

She laughed, "Are you trying to escape the explanation you owe me?"

Edward's eyes immediately grew large in disbelief. "Me? How could you accuse me of such a dastardly deed?" She glared at him, all signs of playfulness gone. He sighed and guided her to the veranda. "I don't want you to get sun burned."

Leone and Alcee were still sitting at a long table when they had reached the platform. Sage had barely noticed. "Where were you?"

Her father's eyes hardened as he stared onto an ivy-covered wall across them on a wall to the side of the courtyard. "When I first came here, Aro told me to watch a young werewolf. He was only twelve when I first began to watch him. He is now twenty two. I had to watch him for four days out of the week, for the other three days I would do as I pleased and…fed." He watched her face as he said the word. When she did not flinch he continued. "Once Aro assigned me with parenting a child, he allowed me to only be with him for a day out of the week."

"Can I meet him?"

Edward looked at her. He tried to imagine his beautiful daughter in the dank and filthy dungeon. Would she be afraid and horrified of all vampires when she saw all the scars on Guiseppe's body? The fresh and the old? "Perhaps."

Sage did not press the subject; she had bigger issues to argue. "Did you really see that girl, Bree, die?"

His hair shifted slightly as he bobbed his head. He would not meet her eyes. "I did not always live here, in Volterra. I used to live in a coven of vampires who would only drink from animals and we traveled across the Northern part of North America. We were a coven of seven, a strange thing in the vampire world. Another coven, a group of three, had met us. It was two males with a female, one of the males and the female were mates. Under certain circumstances to save one of our family members, we had to kill the female's mate. She became very angry and hungered for revenge. She created an army to kill my mate-"

"You have a mate?"

Edward winced at his slip up. He did not want to speak of Bella, even after all the years and with his daughter, it still pained him. "Yes, I will tell you of her when I finish this tale." He knew she would not forget his promise. "She created an army to kill my mate, a mate for a mate as she had said it. She planned on killing my mate to give me the same pain she held when we had killed her mate. She caught the idea of biting many humans to create an army of newborns in the South of the United States.

"She put the plan into action. She bit Bree and when my family-we had joined with the nearby werewolf pack to fight them, so we had our own army to fight them with-was fighting them, Bree told the leader of my coven that she wished to surrender. The leader of my coven is a very compassionate man; it had been his idea to drink animals. He agreed to spare her life.

"The Volturi decided it was time for them to intervene. When this crazed vampire created this army, she was named a serial killer in the human world. The Volturi keep the existence of vampires in extreme secrecy, so when a vampire starts creating to many murders they need to intervene. We had already finished the battle and Bree was the only one left, for she had surrendered. Although she had surrendered, Jane and Felix killed her." Sage knew of Jane's power and she immediately understood why her father could only watch.

"What about your mate?" Sage asked.

Edward sighed, "It is a very long story." Sage positioned her body in a more comfortable arrangement. Edward smirked and began. "You know of Leone's liking for Alcee, correct?" She nodded. "My first and only love was very similar to their's…"

He did not tell her the entire story, otherwise he would have been continuing until the next day. He had already told her of James and Victoria, so it was a much shorter story.

"That's why you're here?" Edward gave a short nod. He rubbed his chest a vague attempt to try to lessen the pain. It was now raining; the wind from the north blew drops onto their faces. It was summer, so she was not cold when she was wet.

Edward closed his eyes and imagined her. He could remember their first summer together, she had twirled in a rain similar to this. He had twirled her.

Sage could see the pain it caused him as his eyes closed. She jumped up and shouted her idea to cheer him up. "It's raining! Come on, let's play hide and go seek!" Edward eyes opened and he smiled.

"That's fine, not for too long. You're not wearing your coat and I don't want you to catch a cold." She nodded quickly and tapped his hand.

"You're it! Count to one hundred fifty, and human pace." She put emphasis on human and began running.

Rain pounded onto plants and slid from her hair into her ears, blocking out the sound of her father counting. She made a zigzag path to the ivy covered wall and the cluster of bushes that sat against it.

The courtyard was very large, about seventy-five yards across from wall to wall; zigzagging only made the distance longer. Sage's throat felt like it had closed up and she was soon sitting on the dirt path gasping. Each gasp brought a smaller amount of air and after each gasp she wished for more. She could suddenly remember in perfect clarity where her inhaler laid at the moment, on to of her bedside table where she had left it when Leone and Alcee had the good idea of playing Goldfish with her. In the rush to get outside before it began to rain, she had left it there.

Her chest ached and her wheezes made her sound like a dying cow. She laughed at her thought but it came out as a sudden gasp. The skin around her mouth felt cold compared to the warm raindrops falling on her face, they felt like blood.

Edward could barely make out the gasps among the sounds of the hammering rain. He knew those sounds better than almost any other. He kneeled down on the mud path and brushed her hair away from her lips. They were blue, she needed her inhaler.

He picked her up and shouted towards Leone and Alcee. "Leone, go to her room and grab the inhaler, quickly please." Edward knew he had already seen Sage. The sound of running feet came from his left, the soles of the shoes made a strange sticky sound when they lifted from the mud.

"What happened?" Alcee asked. "Where's her inhaler?"

Edward shook his head and could not keep his eyes from looking towards the veranda every five seconds. "I can't find it on her person, she must have forgotten it. Which way was she running?" Alcee had been watching while Edward had been counting.

She pointed her finger towards the ivy covered wall. A few drops slid off of the point and onto Sage's rapidly falling and rising chest. "In a zigzag motion towards that wall. She was running especially fast for her, obviously she wanted to hide somewhere among there."

The anger began to boil underneath his skin, why had she done such a thing? He became more frustrated when he realized that it was his fault for agreeing to the game.

Edward turned towards Leone before he even heard him. He threw the inhaler and Edward caught it with perfect accuracy. The tiny mechanism was put to her mouth and her shaky hand rose to push the medicine into her mouth but it quickly fell back once she felt the medicine flood her lungs by her father's touch.

"Thank you, Alcee and Leone. You may leave; I must speak to my daughter." Edward's voice was firm and heated. They both left before he had to say another word, disappearing past the rose bushes and through the door leading to the veranda.

Sage sat by the nearest rose bush with her legs drawn up to her chest to keep away from the thorns. She felt relatively better except for being a little shaken up. Her eyes followed her father's pacing body. His hand continually switched from running through his hair and pinching the bridge of his nose. Rain continued to fall and made puddles in the footprints he left behind.

He had never been this angry before, occasionally he would give her serious remarks that he would expect her to heed but he had never shouted at her. She already expected the shouting, his eyes were so livid they were already speaking.

"Are you angry with me?" When she had been planning to say the words, Sage had not expected them to sound so fragile and afraid.

"Yes." Edward stopped pacing and looked to the ivy covered wall. He turned back to her small form and began talking loudly and angrily. "I've reminded you countless times, Sage! How could you forget this one time? You are not a vampire; you are able to get hurt on the outside and on the inside. At this age I thought that you would know better. Tell me Sage, why did you not bring your inhaler? You knew that you would be running around. You are very active despite your health's warning. Why did you not remember?"

She had never thought that his eyes looked horrifying; they were only red, but many things were red. Alcee's lipstick, her favorite t-shirt, coke soda cans, and ketchup. Now as she looked up into her father's eyes, she understood why the people in the stories Alcee brought her were so afraid of vampires with red eyes.

"I was in a hurry, there were already clouds outside and I wanted to play in the sun. Neither Alcee nor Leone reminded me-"

"You need reminding? Do not blame your faults on others." Edward was no longer yelling, but his words seethed and dripped with acid. "You cannot rely on everyone to remind you're for these things, Sage. I am disappointed in you."

Parents always say that line when they want their child to feel guilty and rethink their actions. For most children it is more affective than the actual yelling, the soft words telling their child that they hurt them made their child suddenly wish to live up to their expectations and to be held in their arms again.

Sage was different. She stood up, her own eyes green with acid. The radioactive pools looked ready to kill. Not bothering to wipe off the mud from her jeans, she faced her father, two feet between them. "You're disappointed with me? I'm disappointed with you! You say that you would do anything for your love, but you will not even listen to her! You selfishly thought that she was not capable of loving you as much as you did for her, had it not occurred to you that it may be so? No." Edward's face was stolid but his eyes became slowly pained through their blank canvas. Sage did not take any note of it and continued. "Perhaps I do not want you to approve of me, your standards and ideas are not excellent ones."

The radioactivity continued to boil in their containers. Her eyes stared at his paper blank face. He continued to stare back, not letting on at all how much her words had hurt him.

"I'm going to go find Alcee." Sage turned on the mud and splashed in small puddles on her way towards the looming castle. Rain fell from her hair into her eyes and she stuffed her hands into her jeans' pockets. Droplets of mud splattered her sneakers, changing the yellowed laces to a pale brown. She was too livid to look back and he was too pained to call for her.

**I was going to put more, but then the chapter would have just been so long! I thought people would get bored.**

**Mia**


	18. Only

**I own nothing except for Sage, Avery, Alcee, Leone, Guiseppe, Fausto and Pulcherie. **

_**Previously…**_

_The radioactivity continued to boil in their containers. Her eyes stared at his paper blank face. He continued to stare back, not letting on at all how much her words had hurt him. _

"_I'm going to go find Alcee." Sage turned on the mud and splashed in small puddles on her way towards the looming castle. Rain fell from her hair into her eyes and she stuffed her hands into her jeans' pockets. She was too livid to look back and he was too pained to call for her._

**Now**

The trouble with going to look for Alcee was that Sage did not fully remember where Alcee was. Although she had gone to the office countless times, the castle seemed to change each time she traveled there. She was unable to understand how her father or anyone could remember their way around.

Now she was traveling down an unfamiliar hall where fluorescent lights did not light up the hall well. Her squeaking wet sneakers sounded like explosions in the halls. The slow calm breaths soon began to quicken as she traveled deeper into the darker corridors.

A hand came over her mouth and before she could gasp she was inside a room. The walls looked like her own without her posters attached. The single bed was the same as hers and so was the chest of drawers, but the room was definitely less cheerful just by the lack of the duck rocking chair. A table next to the chest of drawers held a bowl and a knife along with several matches most of them spilling out of their case.

Sage did not really notice any of the room's characteristics; she was much more concerned with the hands that had pulled her into the room.

"I'm going to let go, and if you say a word I will break your jaw. Agreed?" Sage would not have bet that he was making an empty promise. She nodded her head fervently and he let go of her mouth, pushing her into the middle of the room. The strange olive pale complexion immediately reminded her who he was, Felix, from the day before yesterday in the library.

He smiled at her with his shiny white teeth, dangerous as a shark's, no doubt even more. "You smell absolutely delicious, especially with the water magnifying your scent."

She shivered, from his words and the coldness in the castle that nearly froze the raindrops to her skin.

Cold hands held the knife on from the table; she did not even see him move. "Aro would be very upset with me if I changed you now since you are much too young. About the same age as Jane, although no one is quite sure of her real age. Back then no one really remembered the birthdays. You don't even know your own." He chuckled and spun the blade on the tip of his finger.

"My promise involves screaming." The next second he had her left arm, pale side up, in his left hand. He barely slid the sharp edge; the blade was so fine that he barely had to apply any pressure to the alabaster skin over her wrist. His hand lifted hers up so that it pointed towards the ceiling, the blood dripped down slowly catching on the fine hairs of her arm. Felix licked the forthcoming drops careful not to touch the wound with his venom.

Air and its contents began to touch the cut and it began to burn. She whimpered.

Felix looked up from her arm, "Since making unintelligible noises was not in the agreement, I will on crush your hand instead of your jaw." The left hand holding her own gripped down hard and she bit the inside of her lips so hard that she was afraid it may have come off, she did not want to make another sound. She was convinced that at least three fingers were broken along with the bones in her palm connecting to her wrist. Tears brimmed in her eyes. Felix smiled at her struggle to stay quiet.

"You have better control than I thought." Blood began to pool at the crease on the underside of her elbow. He sucked it up carefully as to avoid any contact with his teeth and her skin.

After a while, she began to feel light headed. She welcomed the incomprehensible feeling and used it as an escape from the torture. Felix pinched her so hard it left a bruise on impact. She dug her nails into her palm.

He saw her glazed-over eyes. "Well, I do not want to take too much or you may become unconscious or perhaps even die. That would not be good news to Aro. So before I take that much blood, let's get it pumping and warm. I will let you out of this room and give you five minutes to run away and then I will come looking for you." Seconds later he was absent from her side and by the door. Turning the knob he said, "Your time starts now." Sage bolted out the door.

Fast as she was able to, she ran towards any hall across any corner. Tearing strips from her t-shirt along the way, she bandaged her wrist crudely to stop the flow of blood. Ignoring her protesting legs and her sore hand, she wandered where she would go to. Time was too short to look for her father, she had seen the castle from the outside and even if she shouted out for him he may be too far away to hear her. Years of running around the courtyard with her father kicked in and she ran faster than she ever knew she was capable. She knew if she began to slow down, her breathing would be too quick and full of gasps to control. Her father still held her inhaler. If she could find Leone, Alcee, or even Demetri she would be alright. She knew her father may be too angry and assume she was with Alcee to care where she was at the moment.

"I'm coming for you." She heard a shout. It was not all that far away and she began to panic. Her clothes had already dried and were no longer wet at all. There was no water to dissuade him from her path.

While not paying any attention to her aching lungs, she realized she had run straight to a dead end. Making a 360 turn, she saw a heavy stone door in the wall next to the end of the corridor. Without any other options, she pulled hard with her right hand on the door immensely thankful that it was not locked, and entered the sinister dark.

Unaccustomed to the narrow stair case, Sage hit her left side on the cold wall. Her short shriek of pain was involuntary and she quickly traveled the rest of the steps, not wanting to find out if anyone had heard her.

At the bottom of the stairs, she quickly maneuvered herself against the wall until she bumped into a wall with her right side, indicating the intersection of the two walls. She slid down the corner and tried futilely to gain control of her rapid breathing. Her lungs begged for more air but her throat refused. The pain in her lungs almost cancelled out the pain in her hand.

"Who's there?" A deep gruff voice called out. After a while when Sage did not answer, a hand came down on her right shoulder. She flinched away from the hot touch.

"Do you have an inhaler?" She shook her head fervently. He took her right hand into his and placed it on his own bare chest. "Listen to my breathing, calm down and try to match yours to mine." Although it pained her and made her chest ache, she did as she was told. She slowed down her breathes one by one in order to match the man's own breathing rhythm.

"There you go." He whispered and dropped her hand. With her mind a little more cleared, she was able to take in the room that she was in. The ceilings were high and many sets of chains and other devices adorned the walls. Small windows were set high up on the wall. The walls were made of stone and felt cool and damp. She could hear the rain.

Sage moved her stare to the large man in front of her. He would have been very tall if he had been standing and he looked much older than her. His skin was a tanned brown but strangely lacked pigment all the same. Darker lines roamed the skin where he had been struck before. She guessed that he did not go outside very often. He had chin length inky black hair and such dark brown eyes that they looked black in the darkness. He was crouching in front of her so that he could have put her hand on his chest.

"Who are you?" The man's voice was sudden in the empty quiet.

Sage shook her head, pulled up her knees to her chest, and gingerly held them together.

"Look I'm not going to hurt you, I know you're human-" while speaking to her, the man had reached out his hand to place on her left one in a comforting gesture.

The motion turned out to be painful instead as the large hand made the bone fragments shift under her skin. She screamed out and violently took her hand back from under his. She cradled her broken hand in the area between her legs and chest.

The man looked as if he were about to apologize when they both heard the door on the top of the staircase open.

"I see you've found our resident werewolf. Well I figured that it was only a matter of when." Sage shivered at the recognition of the voice and tried to squeeze herself into the corner as much as she could. The man in front of her tensed and stood, shifting his body so that he was in front of her shielding her from Felix.

He growled and Felix laughed. "You're protecting the girl, werewolf? How sweet." The light coming from the hall of the open door glinted from his teeth and bounced off of the sharp angles of his face. Sage bowed her head so that she faced her cradled hand. "I am sorry to disappoint you but against both Jane and I, dog, you won't last long. She will be here any moment. We need only have to wait for her."

"But I'll get a head start."

Felix chuckled once again. "Only if I come down there, I doubt that you can reach me from up here. I find no reason to come down yet."

"You and Jane are no longer needed here, Felix. You may return to your quarters." Sage's head shot up and she let out a breath that she had been holding. Her eyes saw her father's stern gaze towards Felix. Felix returned it with a grin.

"Does Aro know of this?"

Edward grinned maliciously, "Very well. You are to return for your guard duty in two days."

Felix snarled and gave a sinister grin to Sage before leaving. Once he was sure that Felix had gone, Edward was in front of the man in a matter of seconds. His face had changed to one of panic yet still held authority over the situation.

"What happened?" The question was directed towards the man. His posture had relaxed considerably and he was no longer in a defensive stance in front of her.

Sage stood up and walked to her father. She wrapped her good right arm around him and without hesitation he held her close to him.

"I'm sorry. I understand now." He nodded and stroked her hair.

"I was sitting down here, waiting for Felix or Jane to come, and she came down. Sage I'm guessing?" She could feel her father nod. "She was gasping and wheezing so I surmised that it must be an asthma attack. I asked if she had an inhaler and she said no. We were able to calm it down enough to where she was breathing normally. I asked her about her name and then Felix came in looking all evil. So since he looked like he was going to cause harm I decided that I should protect her. He didn't do anything, just threats. He didn't want to fight me alone so he said he was waiting for Jane."

Edward looked at his friend sadly. "You know that it will be worse for you when they come back."

The man nodded thoughtfully. "Yes, but this way I'm the only one that gets hurt."

Sage turned around to look at him. His eyes were so dark, she had never seen eyes as dark as though. They had felt so much pain…

"Are you bleeding?" Edward turned his daughter around so that she faced him. His long fingers held her arm delicately. They peeled away the crude wrappings and revealed the cut. A line of dried blood connected the scabbed over cut on her wrist to the underside of her elbow. His fingers gently touched the swollen skin of her left hand and his short intake of breath showed his surprise as he turned her hand over. The coolness of his fingers felt nice on her skin.

"We need to go to Alcee, she has the first aid kit. We need to set the bones so that they heal properly and clean the wound." His eyebrows came together in a sign of anger. "I'm surprised he didn't loose control or drop any venom into the cut."

"No," Sage said softly. "He was very careful not to. He kept telling me that Aro would be angry and I would be like Jane. All he wanted was my blood."

Edward turned to the man. "Thank you, I am in your debt. I have no idea how to thank you."

The man smiled at her father and then towards Sage. "No problem at all, glad to be of service." He held out his hand for her to shake.

"Sage." She told him as she took the hand into her own.

"Guiseppe." He dropped her hand but held contact with his eyes.

"I will return soon, if you'd like, I'll bring Sage along as well." Edward smiled slyly at Guiseppe and at the same time gave him a warning glance. Sage knew it was somehow related to his thoughts.

Her father picked her up in a bridal style fashion and began to run. The last thing she saw of the dungeon was Guiseppe's smile.

**Huh. There's something for you to think about when you finish this chapter. Next one is being written.**

**Mia**


	19. Right

Nothing owned here

**Nothing owned here.**

_**When we last left off…**_

"_Sage." She told him as she took the hand into her own._

"_Guiseppe." He dropped her hand but held contact with his eyes._

"_I will return soon, if you'd like I'll bring Sage along as well." Edward smiled slyly at Guiseppe and at the same time gave him a warning glance. Sage knew it was somehow related to his thoughts._

_Her father picked her up in a bridal style fashion and began to run. The last thing she saw of the dungeon was Guiseppe's smile._

**Now**

_**Seconds to Minutes, Minutes to Hours, Hours to Days, Days to Weeks, Weeks to Months, Months to Years**_

"Jeez, it's so boring down here. How do you guys stand it?"

Guiseppe and Edward shrugged. Guiseppe decided to answer. "Before you came your father would tell me all about you. Your habits, your most embarrassing moments," He began counting each one off of his fingers. Edward laughed. "Oh! He once brought me down a couple of baby photos. Your little butt was so cute."

Sage hoped that it was dark enough that neither of them could see her blush. "That's wonderful. Thank you for telling me your opinion on my infant butt. Dad, can you go get Alcee for me?"

Guiseppe's eyes began to panic but he hid it with a laugh. "I was just kidding, Sage. Don't be so overdramatic."

Sage rolled her eyes and blew a piece of her hair out of her eyes only to have it land back in her eyes. Perhaps Aro would allow Leone to take her to get her hair cut. "Stupid long hair."

A warm hand leant forward and brushed it behind her ear. "I like your stupid long hair." Guiseppe's words blew across her face as he said the words. Her cheeks immediately began to warm, his lips were only inches from her own. Despite her own crazed thoughts on what to do next, her body leant forward.

"Can you at least do this when I'm not in the room?" Sage slammed her back against the wall and felt her cheeks flush. She could have cried out at what an idiot she had just been.

It had been a little over a year since she had met Guiseppe as Felix played with her. Since then her father never let her out of his or Leone's sight. She could not even be alone with Alcee since she could easily be overcome by a vampire.

Besides that, Guiseppe had become exactly what she needed, a friend other than her father. She came with her father nearly every week. At first she had been horrified to see the injuries Felix, Jane, and Demetri had given to him. She wondered how he could have felt any remorse for her broken hand when he had suffered so much worse. When he recovered in the span of two days, Sage began to slowly become accustomed to them. She would do anything to take the pain away though.

Over the last few months she began to feel something more. For some reason, she became embarrassed every time she went to see him. He was always shirtless, her father said it was because he liked to transform often and Aro only gave him the necessities.

It became even worse when Guiseppe had once kissed her on the cheek after her dad had gone up the stairs and was waiting for her at the door on the outside of the dungeon. Still, it was only a friend to friend kiss, so Sage was unconvinced that Guiseppe had any feelings toward her as she had begun to develop for him. Besides, he was eleven years older than her. He doesn't want to waste his time with a kid like her.

Right?

_**Seconds to Minutes, Minutes to Hours, Hours to Days, Days to Weeks**_

"I'll see you guys later." Edward Anthony Masen Cullen had begun to rise from his spot on the wall.

"What? Where are you going?" Sage was startled by her father's abrupt statement. He had never left her alone with anyone but Leone or himself.

"Volturi guard tasks." He answered without looking at her as he headed towards the stairs.

"Aren't you doing a Volturi guard task? Shouldn't someone else do it? You're preoccupied!" Sage's voice became louder in an attempt to hide the stutters her nervousness was creating.

Edward stopped at the bottom of the stairs and looked at Sage shaking his head. A small smile tugged at his lips but only Guiseppe noticed it. "Don't let her get into any trouble alright?" He gazed at Guiseppe. "I'll be in hearing range if anything happens." He hinted. A flash of light emitted from the door and then her father was gone.

Fiddling with her jacket's zipper, Sage refused to break the ice first. She had just been left alone with her crush and she had no idea of what to do.

"Sage?" She jumped at the calling of her name and the zipper clattered to the floor. Guiseppe laughed. "Are you alright? Are you cold, you're shaking?"

She was shaking? She had not noticed. "No, I'm fine."

Guiseppe maneuvered himself so that he was only two feet away sitting from her. He took her left hand in his and flipped it so that the palm was facing up. He ran a line down from the tip of the middle finger over to her wrist. He traced the line of the scar and from there he traced back down so that each of his fingers was touching the tip of one of her own.

"There is something I need to talk to you about." He curled her fingers into a fist with the thumb outside of the curling fingers. His hand placed hers onto her lap and he folded his own, his fingers fiddling with each other. "Ever since I met you, I haven't been able to keep from thinking of you. When you are away from me, I hope that you are safe." He chuckled to himself and looked out one of the high windows.

"I made your father promise that he would never let any harm come to you. Your father always keeps to his word and I knew I could trust him, still, I felt anxious when I was away from you. Even through the torture I couldn't help but worry about you. I began to like the torture," He looked at her face and laughed. "No, I'm not masochistic. When I was being tortured, Felix was with me and so was Jane. That meant that they could not hurt you. He could not hurt you like he did before. I could see that he wanted to in his eyes. When you and your father would come early, Felix would look at you and I could tell that he considered you unfinished business."

Guiseppe shook his head and sighed, turning his face towards the window. "When you are down here, and I can see that you are well and I am able to protect you myself, I am happy. When you smile everything hurts a little less, everything that I worry about is erased and my only worry is to keep that smile from falling off."

He looked at his hands and began to wring his fingers. "I know that it is selfish of me to be happy when you are down here. I see you sometimes staring up at the windows, wishing that you could go outside and away from the darkness. You should not be kept in a dungeon such as this."

Pausing to laugh, he continued. "I once asked your father about love. He told me of all these feelings and then that they were untrue, that love was indescribable. I did not understand, I guessed that I never would. What was love? I figured it was only the sayings of storybooks and fairytales. I understand now. He was right." He turned his head towards her as if to look at her but suddenly turned it down to look at his hands on his lap.

"What I'm trying to tell you, Sage is," Guiseppe looked up into her eyes. "I love you."

_**At the exact same time…**_

Edward sat with his back against the door of the dungeon. He had known Guiseppe for a little while longer than he had known Sage. It was not at all hard to tell after they had met that Sage loved Guiseppe. The same feelings were felt on Guiseppe's side, Edward was able to tell especially when Guiseppe had made him promise to keep Sage safe.

Footsteps coming quickly at human pace broke his concentration on the conversation inside the dungeon. He looked up to see Alcee coming toward him, her face startled and her mind in a jumble. Leone was not at her side.

"Edward, someone is looking for you." She said out of breath and gasping for air.

He shot up immediately from his seat. "What did they look like? Where is Leone?"

"Well, he was a vampire. Honey blond hair with goldish eyes. I'd say about six foot three inches? More or less. He had scars over his arms too. He came in through the front door up to my desk and asked for you. Leone was with me and Aro had just entered the room to assign a task to Leone. When he saw the vampire asking for you, he ordered for him to hold out his hand so that he could read his thoughts. He did as he was told but Aro must have read something that he did not like. I say this because the next moment he ordered Leone to grab onto the vampire and called for Jane. I think he is being questioned by Aro. Knowing Aro he probably has Leone and Felix holding him down. Aro sent me to come and find you."

Jasper was here, it had to be him only he had those scars. The hair and the height may have been mistaken for Carlisle's but his scars could not. What was he doing here? He had given Alice specific instructions to tell the rest of the family to stay away from Volterra and all contact with him.

"Please tell Sage where I'm going; she's in the dungeon with Guiseppe."

"You left them alone together?"

Edward smiled at her. "Long story, perhaps I'll tell you it later. Go down and make sure everything is kept PG, will you?" Alcee grinned back as he ran away.

In the audience hall was where Edward found Aro, Caius, and Marcus with Jasper. As Alcee had predicted, both Felix and Leone were holding him down even if he was not struggling, Jane was also beside the three waiting for Aro's order. Jasper had a calm face drawn on while Aro was interrogating him.

"Why did she tell you to 'Use your powers just in case.'?"

Jasper looked pointedly at Edward and then shifted his gaze to Aro. "She knew that you would be surprised when I arrived, so in case you became violent and unreasonable I was to use my powers and calm you down. Just in case of course."

Aro regarded Jasper carefully. "Why are you not using them at this moment?"

Jasper answered as if telling Aro what his favorite color was. "Alice overestimates my power and I am clearly outnumbered and outpowered here so it would be foolish of me to try to escape using only my power." A spark of recognition in his eyes formed as he realized his mistake. He had just implied that he would try later to escape when he was not outnumbered or outpowered. Quickly, so that Aro would not notice he continued by saying, "I have no reason to be escaping for I have no reason to be under suspicion."

Aro muttered, "Of course not." He thought for a while and brought up his next question. "Why were you sent here, then?"

"Alice has been anxious. She had a brotherly bond with Edward and wishes to know if he is well. She was warned not to come and warned me that you had ordered it but it troubles me when she is anxious like that. So in order to make her happy again, I came to see Edward for myself. Alice refused to come because she insisted that it would be disobeying him and you."

"And your coming does not?"

Jasper smiled wryly. "Edward never told me not to come. So therefore, you never told me not to come."

Turning swiftly, Aro was then facing Edward. "Is this true?"

Edward nodded and began to explain. "I called Alice and told her not to come here or interact with me. I also requested that she carry on the message to the rest of the family. It appears that the request was not fulfilled."

"You should have heard what Emmett wanted to do." Jasper laughed at the memory and Edward joined him with a small chuckle.

"Where is our Alice now?" Aro inquired.

Jasper's gaze hardened at the word 'our' but answered nonetheless. "She is at home with the rest of our coven."

"In your thoughts you had memories of her packing. Where was she packing to go to?"

Jasper smiled. "She was not packing. Our coven tries to fit in with humanity. In order to fit in with humanity, we need to wear the necessary clothes for our environment. She was simply packing away her winter clothes to bring out the lighter summer ones. With all of eternity set out before us, she needed something to pass the time."

Aro nodded. "Alright. You are dismissed to go with Edward, but we prefer that you would leave in two days."

Felix and Leone backed away from the chair along with Jane who had a disappointed look upon her face. Jasper bowed her head towards Aro, Caius, and Marcus. "Of course." He then strode over to Edward.

_Wait for me. I need to be with Alcee. She can't be alone with Felix roaming around._ Edward nodded towards Leone without meeting his eyes and strode out the door with Jasper by his side.

Leone met up with the two and immediately went toward the dungeon when Edward informed him that was where Alcee was currently residing. "Please watch Sage as well." Leone nodded and was soon gone after Edward had made the request.

In the hall before the corridor that led to the dungeon Edward decided that it was safe enough to talk with Jasper.

"Why are you really here Jasper?"

Jasper smiled weakly towards him. "Alice asked me to come. She was preoccupied."

Edward's gaze hardened. "Where is she?"

Smiling cunningly, Jasper answered with another question. "Where do you think?"

Edward's eyes narrowed and his nostrils flared.

"Damn it."

**Next chapter you'll find out why both of them are where they currently are.**

**Mia**


	20. Hellooo

Nothing owned here

**Nothing owned here**

_**When we last left off…**_

_Edward's gaze hardened. "Where is she?"_

_Smiling cunningly, Jasper answered with another question. "Where do you think?"_

_Edward's eyes narrowed and his nostrils flared. _

"_Damn it."_

**Now**

"You don't understand, do you, Jasper?" Edward didn't wait for a response. "These are the Volturi! Neither of you seem to understand that. They will kill us without even thinking about it. Jane, Alec, do either of those names remind you of how powerful the people we are talking about are?"

"Of course I understand. Perhaps not as much and fully as you do but I am able to grasp a nicely sized concept of what this is all about."

"Then why are you here? Why is she there?"

Jasper's head fell. "You don't know what they are doing. Edward, they did not keep their promise." Edward's eyes widened but he did not interrupt. "It started when Alice saw you go to Bella. She was so happy that you returned, Bella I mean. She ran up to you and hugged you only to be pushed away, insulted, and then left by you."

"But I never went to see her-" Edward started but Jasper waved him silent.

"Exactly, Alice later saw a vision of you in the same place at the same time. It was obvious that you had never gone and done the horrible things that Alice saw being done to Bella. We did not understand and then another strange vision occurred. Bella was giving birth and it occurred to her and the doctors that she was giving birth to twins. When the second one, a girl, began to lose oxygen and suffocate the doctors had to rush her off. The child was carried off by another doctor, who looked human, after she had been healed to a plane heading towards Volterra just as Bella was told the child did not survive the accident. Bella was once again heartbroken."

Jasper looked at Edward who nodded in a signal to continue. "Two years later, after living with Charlie and raising the boy, Avery she named him, Charlie was able to persuade her to take a small vacation for working so hard.

"Bella went onto the plane and arrived safely. She caught a taxi but instead offered it to an elderly woman, telling her that she would catch the next one. The woman nodded and smiled to her but when she looked into the cab the taxi driver's eyes had become a menacing red and he looked as if he were about to eat her." Jasper chuckled. "When Bella looked into the cab at the driver to see what had frightened the old woman she only saw the taxi driver drumming on his steering wheel, with normal light brown eyes."

He sighed and looked away. "Instead of taking her to the hotel she was arranged to stay at, he drove out into the middle of the forest. He bit her and left, leaving only a note. The note told her that she was to come to the Volturi in 14 years but not now because there were things that Aro was preoccupied with. Five years after she attained relatively good control and a college degree, she returned to raise her son Avery."

Edward leant against a wall and slid down gently. He slammed his fist into the wall behind him and then tucked his head between his knees and his chest. After a few minutes he lifted his head and stood up in front of Jasper.

"Sage is my daughter then?" Jasper nodded solemnly.

"It would seem that is what the events add up to equal."

Edward furiously ran his hand through his hair. "Fausto. It has to be him, Aro and he were discussing if he had perfected my voice. I can't be sure that he went to her as me, the doctor, and the taxi driver but they all had to be vampires and he is the only one who can shape shift."

"Has Aro discussed any of the other guards' tasks?" Edward shook his head and began to pace. The secrecy and the unanswered questions suddenly began to make sense to Edward. Aro wanted to get everything he wanted, and more, even if that meant false promises and stealing infants from their mothers.

He froze in place and faced Jasper. His face was hard and his eyes were swirling like waves in a hurricane. "We need to get out of here."

Jasper recognized the irrational look in Edward's eyes. The gaze in his eyes was no doubt predicting that he would do something that he may regret. They even had a partial feral look to them. "Edward, we need to be careful. You cannot do anything unreasonable. I do agree that we need to leave this place but we have to be quiet about it."

"Yes, of course." Edward's mind had already begun spinning with ideas. How many people would they need to help them or to get out? The more people the more aid but there was also the risk of exposure and the escape turning into a large brawl.

Sage was a definite escapee and she would never leave Guiseppe, not after what he just told her even if she did not feel exactly the same way.

Alcee's stay in the Volturi's Castle was beginning to end, Edward and Leone could both tell by Aro's frequent stares at Alcee. She had begun to feel uncomfortable under his gaze and tried to avoid him whenever possible. Alcee would come also, possibly Leone. It depended on whether he was willing to leave the Guard. His power would be a great help if they encountered any obstacles. If he chose not to come with them, they may have to fight Leone if Aro sent out his Guard.

Nodding to Jasper he began to head for the dungeon to tell the others.

_**At the Same Time**_

It was silent until a strange raspy noise emitted from Sage's throat that soon developed into a cough interrupted the quiet of the dungeon.

"Sage? Sage?!" Guiseppe had moved so that he was beside her, gently patting her on her back in order to make the coughing easier. "I'm sorry, did I startle you? Is the idea disgusting?" His face contorted in pain; if he had to he would leave her alone. He loved her after all.

The coughs transformed into giggles and Guiseppe backed away fearing that his confessions may have been too much for her mind to handle. Sage then abruptly turned to face him and gave him a big gleaming white smile.

"Are you insane? Of course I love you!" She gave another laugh and threw herself toward him, landing her lips on his.

"Hey you two," Alcee's voice rang through the room. Sage groaned and they flew apart, Sage knocking her head on the stone wall behind her. "Ow, did that hurt?"

Sage sent a glare toward Alcee and another gaze that clearly read, 'Of course it did, no thanks to you.'

Guiseppe felt the back of her head, "Yup, that's gonna be a big knot on your head."

Rolling her eyes in a large ostentatious manner, Sage rose from the floor. She brushed off the back of her cargo pants and tied her hair into a messy bun. "Did my dad send you?"

"Of course," Alcee answered while stepping down the stairs. "I'm supposed to come down here and make sure nothing gets past PG. His words by the way."

Sage shook her head and sighed. "He's should learn not to eavesdrop."

"He's your father; he's only caring for you."

"Adoptive father," Sage said automatically, although she did not mean for it to sound so cold and regretful. "Where is he?"

Alcee began to bite her nails and then scowled at them when her nail polish chipped. "He has a visitor. That is what I came to tell you."

Confusion was set in Sage's eyes. "Dad never receives visitors."

"Exactly, that's what makes the arrival so strange." Alcee sat down across from Sage and waved her hand in a signal for Sage and Guiseppe to do the same. "When your father made the deal to stay here as a part of the Volturi Guard in the place of his mate, he promised Aro that he would never come in contact with his coven and to tell his coven never to come in contact with him or his mate. Now it appears that one of his coven's members has come here to talk with him even though Edward told him not to."

"So what does this mean?" Sage asked, still not understanding Alcee's nervousness.

"It means that the visitor will be fully question. Aro found something suspicious in his previous thoughts."

"Is that why Leone's not here?"

"Yes, he and Felix are restraining the visitor." Alcee began to chew her nails again despite the fact that she was whittling off the rose colored nail polish. Sage knew that being away from Leone when he was on duty made Alcee edgy. Anything could happen to him when he was on a job; the vampire world was very dangerous.

But even for this, Sage did not understand why she was so jumpy. If the visitor was from her father's old coven then he could not be here for violent reasons.

"Do you think that he is going to attack the guard to free my father?" Alcee shrugged.

"It is certainly a possibility. The first vampires he would try to injure would be the ones holding him down, but he looked too calm to do anything absurd so I should not be worrying." She glowered at her damaged nails.

"What did he look like?" This time it was Guiseppe who broke the uncomfortable silence.

"Blond hair, a little over six feet, scars up and down his arms, and what seemed to be an aura of calm floating around him." She nodded deciding that that was a well described analysis of the visitor's appearance.

Guiseppe knowingly nodded. "Yes, Edward talked about him. I am fairly sure that his name is Jasper."

Giving him an incredulous look, Sage turned towards him. "How would you know?"

"As I said, we talked about his coven's members." He then smiled humorously. "Your naked baby photos can only take up so much time."

Sage slapped his arm and turned her back to him. She nursed her sore hand in a way that she hoped was not too obvious. A smooth pallor tanned hand came from behind her and tenderly took her hand in his, forcing her to turn back to face Guiseppe. He raised the white flesh of her hand to his lips and kissed the reddening palm.

Dazzled beyond comprehension Sage continued to stare at his dark eyes. She fervently shook her head and whispered, "I'm still angry with you."

He smiled suggestively and began to trail soft kisses up her arm causing her to shiver. She could feel the corners of his lips turn upward against her skin. "Perhaps this can convince you otherwise." She felt the warm breath of his words against her neck and the warm lips were soon at the corner of her lips. He began to pull away but was unable to when she put her arms around the back of his neck and pulled him forward, crashing his lips upon hers.

"PG…" Sage could hear a small whisper from her left but she ignored it remembering all the times Alcee had been with Leone in front of her as she grew up.

"Alcee?" Guiseppe broke away from Sage when they heard the voice from the door. He quickly tensed and slightly moved in between Sage and the doorway. Sage only laid back on the wall, disappointed that Leone had made such horrible timing to choose to arrive in the dungeon.

He certainly wasted no time, for in a matter of seconds, Leone was beside Alcee before she could even make a move to stand. He kissed her on the cheek and she lowered her hand from her mouth. Guiseppe's muscles began to loosen and he returned to sitting beside Sage while holding her small hand in his.

"You're alright? Nothing happened?" Alcee looked him over with her eyes, checking for any marks that indicated an injury.

Leone shook his head. "No, he was calm for the entire time. He did not even struggle against us when we were holding him down. All of Aro's questions were answered carefully and supposedly accurately so Aro is allowing him to stay for two days. The visitor and Edward are both out in the hall discussing certain matters. They should be back in a few minutes."

When Leone had finished that sentence, the door at the top of the stair case opened and Guiseppe tensed again. Sage did not make out the reason Guiseppe became ready for battle every time the door opened. She would ask him about it later.

He relaxed when they both saw her father and another man with honey blond hair walk down the steps.

"Leone, Alcee," Edward nodded to the couple sitting down opposite from Guiseppe and Sage. "You have both been acquainted with my brother Jasper." He then turned to where his daughter sat with Guiseppe, holding his hand. Edward smirked. "Sage, this is my brother Jasper and your uncle. Jasper, this is your niece."

Sage waved her free hand and gave a tentative smile. She rarely met new people and was always a bit nervous when first saying hello. To most people, first impressions are everything.

Jasper in return gave a friendly enough smile and said, "I have to admit, I never imagined that I would have a niece. My wife has told me so much about you. It is pleasant to finally see you in person instead of her drawings."

Unsure to what he meant, Sage blushed and nodded while muttering a thank you. Her uncle only chuckled softly.

"My wife is able to see the future based on certain decisions. She has been watching Edward since he left. Lately there have been many gaps in her visions and times when she can see that you have no future at all. I understand why now." Jasper's gaze rested on the werewolf beside Sage. She began to fidget as Guiseppe's gaze hardened when Jasper's only looked in mild curiosity with a wrinkled up nose.

"Jasper, this is Guiseppe the werewolf that I have been watching. Guiseppe this is Jasper my brother." Edward broke the tense air that Guiseppe had created and the atmosphere began to feel calmer.

"Heard so much about you." Guiseppe muttered nearly incomprehensibly.

"Really?" Jasper's gaze shifted to Edward. "I presume that Edward is the reason for that."

"Will you quit being so rude? He hasn't done anything to you." Sage dropped his hand and crossed her arms over her chest. Guiseppe's hand lay empty on the cold stone floor.

Edward ignored the young couple's argument and turned to Leone. "I need to speak with you, now and alone."

Leone nodded. He pat Alcee's hand and rose to follow Edward up the stairs and out the door.

They both faced each other while Edward made a surveillance of the area. Once he was clear that there was no one around he returned his gaze to Leone. "Aro finds that Alcee's presence is unnecessary and she smells far too good for them to allow her to stay any longer."

Leone's gaze hardened so as not to show the pain the unspoken assumption gave him. "Yes, I am aware of that."

"Jasper and I are planning to leave while taking Sage and Guiseppe with us. Aro broke his promise to me and sent Fausto out to change Isabella." Edward's voice was crisp and quick, he showed no emotion in the words.

Leone's eyes quickly widened and narrowed. "Where would you go? There is no where you can hide from the Volturi. They have Demetri."

"His power does not work on Isabella or Sage. I would leave Sage with Isabella and tell them to move quickly to another home. I know a werewolf pack that live in La Push, I am sure that they would welcome another member."

He nodded, his mind comprehending Edward's words.

"Sage won't let me leave Alcee when I tell her." This time Edward eyed Leone very carefully and listened closely to his thoughts. "She knows as well as you and I do that Aro does not want her around any longer."

Leone's eyes grew cloudy and a frown turned the corners of his lips toward his chin. "What are you asking of me?"

Edward shook his head. "You misunderstand. I am not asking anything of you. I am asking if I can do this favor for you. Would you like me to help her escape?"

Leone hung his head. "It isn't that simple. Demetri can track her. Where would she go?"

He was right, Edward admitted to himself. Even if they did escape, Demetri could find them where ever they went. They would find Guiseppe. Sage and Bella would be fine but what about everyone else? Demetri's power was too overpowering.

"Edward!" Both of the vampires turned their heads towards the voice that had called out. Jasper stood at the door of the dungeon, a sleek silver cell phone held in his right hand.

"Alice called and she has a plan."

**Alice saves the day! But will it work?? And will Leone agree? Next chapter will be Alice and Bella along with Avery.**

**Mia**


	21. One

Nothing owned here

**Some of you (including my betas) have been confused about the ages of everyone. Here they are!**

**Bella: **21 _(human) _36 _(vampire)_

**Edward:** about 121

**Guiseppe: **26 _(kinda weird but Quil is older than Claire more than Guiseppe is with Sage)_

**Sage:** 15

**Avery:** 15

**Leone: **35

**Alcee: **35 _(she was 20 when she met Leone)_

**If I missed anyone, review me the missing person and I will inform you of their age on the next chapter. Thank you and enjoy (:**

**Nothing owned here.**

_**When we last left off…**_

_He was right, Edward admitted to himself. Even if they did escape, Demetri could find them where ever they went. They would find Guiseppe. Sage and Bella would be fine but what about everyone else. Demetri's power was too overpowering._

"_Edward!" Both of the vampires turned their heads towards the voice that had called out. Jasper stood at the door of the dungeon, a sleek silver cell phone held in his right hand._

"_Alice called and she has a plan."_

**Now **

**BPOV**

"Cullen? As in Edward Cullen's sister?" Avery Anthony Cullen's eyes narrowed at the small form in front of him. He wanted to shut the door right into her face but before he could even reach for it, her tiny arm hit the door as if she predicted what he was planning.

The woman in front of him, Alice, sighed. "Yes, unfortunately. Let me tell you, though, it was not my idea. He did have good reasons for what he did even if they totally backfired."

Her words registered in Avery's mind but only added gasoline to his growing fire. "You're saying that it was a good thing that he left my mom? After what he called her? After he told her he disgusted her?"

Alice rolled her eyes. "If you want me to be truthful, the man who said those things was not Edward Cullen. Now may I please speak to your mother, we're wasting time."

Avery opened his mouth but I had already come up from behind him. I gently pushed him out of the door frame to get a better look at my sister. She was still my sister even after he had left. That did not change anything between us.

"Alice!" I threw my arms around her and I slightly felt a sense of déjà vu. Only, when I had hugged her like this before I had been very human.

"Bella! I'm so sorry about everything, I am going to explain." I nodded barely understanding her words. The sight of seeing her felt wonderful and tore into my heart at the same time.

"Yes of course. Let me finish making dinner for Avery and then we can talk." Alice nodded and followed me as I led her into my living room. She sat down on the couch and flipped through the channels as I went into the kitchen and began to finish the lasagna.

I heard Avery's breath and I turned to see him sitting on the counter.

"What have I told you about sitting on the counter? The area where I cook meals for people to eat?" I smirked and was satisfied when he jumped down.

He gave me a stern glance that reminded me all too much of him. "Why did you let her in?"

I turned back to check the lasagna in the oven and then turned back to Avery. "It isn't polite to speak about people when they can hear you, Avery."

"I don't care." His eyes were firm and waiting for an answer.

"She's my sister." I told him. "Here eat your salad so you get some vegetables today." He took the clear plastic bowl and fork I shoved at him filled with an uncomplicated assortment of greens.

Opening the refrigerator with his free hand, he grabbed the Italian dressing and poured a generous amount. He then sat leaned against the counter. "Yeah, but she left you."

"Yes, that's true." I reached into the oven and pulled out the glass pan that held the lasagna. The wave of heat warmed my face.

Avery sighed and discontinued the conversation. I used a spatula to cut the small pan of lasagna into six pieces. Maybe he could take eat some of this for lunch tomorrow. Knowing Avery, he would probably eat it for breakfast.

Scooping up the hot serving with the same spatula I sliced it with, I placed it on a paper plate and handed it to him.

"You can eat in the living room." I told him as I walked past to sit on a recliner across from my sister.

Alice flicked off the television with a flick of her fingers on the remote. "How have you been, Bella?"

I looked at her honestly curious face and sighed. "I have certainly been better. The pain is not as bad as the first time, because I have both Jake and Avery." I took a deep breath to try to stay calm. She had not even mentioned him and I was beginning to break down. "But it still hurts." I brought my knees up to my chest and rested my head on them, turning my body so that I had a full view of both Alice and Avery.

She nodded and moved the remote control onto the scratched up wooden coffee table. "You need to know the truth Bella. The man that you last saw, who you thought was Edward, was not him."

My face felt cold and I desperately tried to reign in the feelings of hope I felt. It was too early for that. "What? Then why hasn't he come back? Who was he?"

Alice relaxed on the couch and stretched her legs so that they barely reached the coffee table where she rested her feet; it was obvious she was getting ready for a long explanation. "A few days after we left you when Edward was turning back into a vampire, Edward left without a word to any of us when he had gone off hunting. A day later he called me." The mention of his name so many times made my chest ache but I waited for her to continue. I needed to know what had happened.

"He told me that he had made a deal with Aro."

"What?" My voice rang out interrupting her story. "He made a deal with the Volturi?"

Her head nodded and she pulled on a strand of hair anxiously. "Yes. When he had been hunting, Demetri, Jane, and a new member of the Volturi Guard found him. Jane had told the Volturi that you had not been changed so Demetri was sent to find Edward assuming that you would be with him."

My heart constricted at a sudden thought. "Did they hurt him?" If he had gotten hurt when they had been looking for me…

Relief spread through me at the sight of Alice shaking her head from side to side. "No, not as far as I know at least. Edward told them that he would go to be the Volturi Guard if they left you alone. None of the vampires that had been sent could strike such a deal so they took him to Aro. Edward was able to convince Aro to let him switch places with you if he was a Volturi Guard and if he never spoke to any of Carlisle's coven or you again. He was allowed one phone call to tell us that we were not allowed to speak to you.

"Edward made me promise not to come in contact with you because the Volturi Guard was very strong and they had Jane and Alec." Alice rolled her eyes at this point but I knew she still held fear of them. If she did not she would not have agreed to Edward's request. "I promised him that I would keep an eye on you and him even if I could not come into contact with either of you."

"A few months later I had a vision of you and Edward in the forest by Charlie's house. It was horrible and I absolutely hated Edward." I winced of my own memories and then reminded myself that Alice had said that it had not been Edward. "At the same time Edward had been in Volterra wondering the halls asking Aro for a favor about a werewolf. This conversation later helped me to understand why Edward's future would sometimes disappear but it told me that Edward was not the one who spoke to you that day in the forest.

"Continuing on, I was very happy to see you give birth. I am very sorry I was not there." Alice sent me a look of solemn regret and I nodded that it was fine, it was already done. "I saw your daughter being taken away. I saw her being treated and healed. She was perfectly fine." She began to shake her head. "Another doctor then took her away, pronouncing her dead to the others. He took her to a helicopter and told the driver 'Volterra'. He must have been part of the Volturi. When the vision began to end his features began to shift. It was very strange to watch." She nodded thoughtfully completely agreeing with her thoughts.

"My daughter is alive?" I could not help it; a gigantic grin broke out on my face. Despite the pain that was still in my heart I felt like something was better in this world.

Alice nodded. "Yes, but because she was not breastfed she developed less antibodies than normal children. She was around someone who had a cold. With fewer antibodies to fight it off she developed a cold which since left untreated, by the arrogant spokesperson for the Volturi Aro, developed further into pneumonia. Although there were able to get her to the hospital in time for her to live, she now has asthma. I will explain more about that in a moment."

It was almost too much to comprehend at one moment but I allowed Alice to continue. "I saw you get off at an airport in Portland two years later. The reason that woman turned down the taxi was because when she had turned to look at him his eyes were blood red and he was snarling at her with fangs. I suspect that the fangs were an added drama but there was not doubt that this was the shape shifting Volturi Guard that took your daughter. When you turned to look at him he hand changed fast enough for you to assume that he was a normal taxi driver."

"I saw the note that the Volturi left with you and understood that Aro never meant to keep his promise at all. He wanted all that he could get. He wanted Edward, you and both of your children." Alice scrunched up her nose and her eyebrows. "Horrible man."

Thoughts raced through my mind like electrons around a nucleus. "My daughter is in the Volturi castle." I could feel my own face contort into an expression of panic and worry. Vague memories came into my mind of Felix calling 'Dibs' on my blood, Jane torturing…Edward…for no reason but her own pleasure, the screams of their victims—

"Yes," I let out a strangled breath trying to keep the images at bay. "But there is good news." Alice quickly informed me. Avery began to stand to come to me. "Aro has your daughter well looked after. He gave her to a guard that he knew had the most self control and needed the most training. He named her Sage Marie Cullen."

"Edward," I breathed the name along with the air I had been holding in my lungs. The wind came out smooth from my mouth.

"Yes." Alice smiled. "He is such a good father; you should really see him in action." Alice smiled at a memory. "He never allows her to go off alone in the castle, always playing with her and spoiling her the only ways that he can." Suddenly, a shiver violently shook Alice's body and I was immediately tensed again, waiting for the terrible news.

"What happened, Alice?" I asked.

She looked at me warily, taking in my ragged emotional state. "I don't think that you should hear it. It may be too much of a shock."

I shook my head violently. "No, please Alice, I need to know."

Giving me a wary look she spoke in a hollow voice. "Edward told her about his past, she was thirteen. Sage saw how much it pained him to remember you so she decided to lighten the mood by offering to play hide and go seek since it was raining. They only play in the rain because it hides her scent, therefore Edward has no advantage. He began to count and she ran as fast as she could. Unfortunately she had forgotten her inhaler in her room and collapsed in a violent asthma attack." My nails were digging into the cloth of the arms.

"Mom, you need to relax. You are going to leave holes." Avery whispered and took my hands in his from his place sitting on the floor. I quickly took them back, afraid that I would crush his hands if I held them for comfort.

Alice gave me a cautious glance and continued only when I nodded fervently for her to go on. "Edward sent a friend of his to go get it. They were able to give it to her in time but Edward was very upset with her for forgetting her inhaler when he always reminded her and himself for allowing her to play the game."

She sighed but I found nothing wrong. It was only a scolding, how much harm could become of this? My grip on the armchair lessened.

"By the look on her face I judged that it was the first time Edward had really yelled at her. She yelled at him back saying-" She gave me a warning look. "Don't take this too hard but she told him 'You say that you would do anything for your love, but you will not even listen to her! You selfishly thought that she was not capable of loving you as much as you did for her, had it not occurred to you that it may be so? No.'" I winced. She was scolding him about me. Alice continued in a voice I guessed must be mimicking my daughter's. "'Perhaps I do not want you to approve of me, your standards and ideas are not excellent ones.'"

"That was where everything began to go wrong." Alice's face looked strained as she continued. "Sage went off alone to go find the woman who had replaced Gianna whom she had become nearly best friends with. Edward was too shocked and pained by her words that he did not go after her. Sage did not know the way and was soon lost among the many halls." Alice paused watching me very closely. "Felix found her."

My eyes widened and my sight began to dim. My chest went up and down rapidly and I could not control the speed of my breathing. A voice from far away was calling my name and another one was shouting 'Mom'. A sound close to a thunder clap was made and a stinging sensation formed on my cheek.

Soon my sight began to clear and my chest did not ache from the slow breaths that now passed through my lips. Alice and Avery were both in front of me, Alice's face showed slight annoyance as Avery told her, "That was unnecessary."

"On the contrary it was. See, she is coming to." I nodded to Alice and Avery.

"Thank you Alice," I shifted my position on the chair and glanced at Avery. "Stop glaring Avery, it is impolite."

He rolled his eyes and sat back down next to my feet on the carpet. Alice continued to reside on the couch.

"Do you want me to finish?" Alice asked hesitantly.

I took a deep breath. "Tell me the extent of the injuries and what happened when he had finished please."

She glanced at me mistrustful of my confidence in being in control, but carried on. "A slit on her left wrist, most of the bones fractured in her left hand and an asthma attack. He wanted to play hide and seek in order to 'get the blood pumping and warm'." I grimaced and nodded towards her. "She ran and reached a door I have seen Edward go into many times before. From there on I could not see anything."

"What!?" No, no, no, please God no…

Avery rested a hand on my arm clearly seeing Alice's calm state. "Calm down Bella. I assume that that is where the werewolf resides. Aro had the idea of putting a werewolf in the castle after he read my memories of not being able to see you when you were with a werewolf when we went to rescue Edward. What he miscomprehended was that a person had to be with the werewolf at all times. So he put Edward to watching the werewolf they held in a dungeon so that I would not be able to tell what was going on. Sage went through that door and a few hours later I had a vision of them going to the Gianna's replacement for a first aid kit to set the bones."

I exhaled and nearly laughed. "I cannot believe she grew up in that sort of environment. It is disgusting."

Alice nodded. "That is why we are going to rescue all of them."

I sat up straight immediately. "What? How would we do that? These are the Volturi…"

"I know Bella, I am still working on a plan but I have one pretty well thought out. I just need to know what your power is."

My eyes blinked in surprise. "Uh, I can make people remember and forget things. I cannot read their memories like Aro can though and I have to know exactly what I want them to remember or what I want them to forget.. I've never tried it on a vampire before."

She shrugged. "Try it on me now."

"Um, okay. What do you want me to do?"

Her teeth bit the inside of her lip and she thought for a moment. When she finished she glanced up at me. "Make me forget I ever knew you."

I bit my lip in worry but nodded. It would take a while; I would have to erase all of our memories together but it was possible if my power worked on vampires.

I stepped up from the arm chair and strode over to Alice. I placed my finger on the middle of her forehead, both of her eyes looked toward it making her looked cross-eyed while looking upward. I chuckled and she grinned up at me.

Maintaining a formal look I concentrated into her memories.

Working my power onto vampires was much easier than working it onto humans. Human memories were usually vague and long forgotten so I had to strain to work them up. Making them forget was easy, since human have such fragile minds.

Pulling up the memories was no trouble at all while deleting them proved to be more of a difficulty. Vampires had such vivid memories and could never forget, this caused the job of deleting the memories to be much like disassembling a car piece by piece. I dare not imagine how hard it would be to assemble it back again.

Visions, meeting me, finding Edward and me together, conversations on the phone, shopping sprees with me and by herself looking for things with me, all the things related to me or her talking to me were covered with an ocean of black. She could not remember these if she tried, but the memories would still be fairly easy to uncover.

I opened my eyes that I did not realize I had closed and pulled away from her. Alice's eyes had closed also but they snapped open as soon as I began to walk away from her backwards.

She scrunched her eyes at me and pursed her lips in concentration. I began to fidget and I looked away from her face and towards the hem of my t-shirt. I tore away a loose thread. Was she beginning to remember? Was a vampire's memory harder to cover?

Alice's eyes snapped wide open and she grinned. "I know who you are; you're the girl in the photo with Edward!"

I could feel my own eyes crinkle. "Excuse me?"

"That girl, that Edward's hugging." She told me in a voice that showed that it was obvious. "You two are holding hands and kissing. The picture is absolutely adorable." She grinned. "He keeps it right beside all his music. He also has a song he composed about you, did you know that?"

I shook my head and waved my hand. "No, thank you though. Do you remember anything else, even far as you can remember?"

She looked at me strangely, "I don't understand. As in my human memories?"

"No vampire ones, something covered." I hinted but she still shook her head.

"Should I? By the way, I'm Alice Cullen." She smiled at me.

I grinned back. "No, you shouldn't." I placed my finger back to her forehead and lifted the heavy blanket with my mind. It was difficult, like lifting the soaked thick comforter out from the pool while you're inside it but it was handled. I made sure that she remembered the feeling of forgetting.

I took off my finger and stepped back a step. Avery had gotten up earlier to get another slice of lasagna.

Alice beamed bigger than the sun and hugged me tight while laughing miraculously.

"Yes! It's perfect!" Alice chuckled again and let go of me. "Bella, listen carefully, alright? We want to do this as soon as possible."

**For some reason, I always imagine Sage and Avery (especially Avery) with English accents. Kinda weird, but that's just me. Envision them however you like (:**

**Mia**


	22. Sight

I nodded and sat beside her on the couch and rotated my body so that I faced her completely

**I own nothing, absolutely nothing but I will not cry. No! I refuse to cry. **

_**When we last left off….**_

_I took off my finger and stepped back a step. Avery had gotten up earlier to get another slice of lasagna._

_Alice beamed bigger than the sun and hugged me tight while laughing miraculously._

"_Yes! It's perfect!" Alice chuckled again and let go of me. "Bella, listen carefully, alright? We want to do this as soon as possible."_

**Now**

I nodded and sat beside her on the couch and rotated my body so that I faced her completely.

"How long did that take, do you think, Avery?" Alice asked him from the kitchen. Small slicing noises could be heard as the lasagna was cut into appropriate sized pieces.

"A few seconds, maybe." He entered with a full plate as tomato meat sauce dripped onto the carpet. Groaning, he went to get a napkin before I could scold him.

"Anyway," Alice continued shortly after. "Your power works on vampires. That has been proven, correct?" I nodded. "Alright, then here is what we do. The main obstacle that is stopping us from freeing Edward and everyone else is Demetri's power. We can easily avoid Jane's power and as long as he doesn't touch us, Aro won't be a problem either. We'll need to get through the front entrance because the woman there is well acquainted with Edward, in a friendly way." Alice beamed at me and I rolled my eyes. "She will most likely have someone with her, her vampire mate, Edward, or maybe even Jasper. It would be marvelous if her vampire mate, Leone, decided to help us but he doesn't know. Edward is working on convincing him to escape with them but he believes the Volturi is too powerful. Hopefully my plan will help Edward. Leone can put visions into anyone's mind to distract them so that he can do whatever he wants to them. Having him on our side would be a great advantage."

"Jasper will be with Alcee, so that when we come in he will be with us and he can sooth the vampires as we begin to make them forget all about our family. Every memory, gone. That is where you come in."

"The Volturi does not like everyone to know everything all at once. If he allowed that vampires would be all over the place criticizing his plans, maybe even rebelling, as we are going to do now if Leone helps us. This is good for us most vampires in the castle have never even heard of the Cullen family, not even of Edward of Sage."

Bella eyebrows scrunched, not understanding. "But wouldn't they smell a human on the grounds?"

Alice nodded. "Yes, but they assume it is Alcee or the leftover smells of the meals. They drink much more frequently than we do. They believe that all humans smell the same so they don't bother to investigate."

"While we move through the castle, we will try to avoid any contact possible. If we do come across another guard then we will have to erase their memories but the main vampires we need to find are Felix, Demetri, Jane, Alec, Heidi, that vampire who changes forms, and of course the actual Volturi."

"Why don't you just kill these guys if they're so bad?" Food splattered out of his mouth, his fork still hovered in the air after being emptied.

"Gross, Avery." I wrinkled my nose. "Don't talk with your mouth full." He cleaned his mouth with a paper bounty napkin and I answered his question. "Because there is no one else who keeps other vampires in line. With out these guys there would be no one holding everyone else back from killing humans in sprees."

"We're also very good people." Alice grinned at Avery after she said that. He glowered at her attempt at friendliness. I could not catch his eyes to scold him.

I knew that Avery would have to do more than that to deter Alice from making friends with him, but he did not have to be rude to her. I had forgiven Edward, why couldn't he? Jacob had rubbed off on him too much.

"Continuing on," Alice faced me again. "They will all be centered near the throne room where we will catch them right before they will feed. That way, they will be weaker. Jasper can calm them and if he decides to help us, Leone will place images in their minds to distract them. I don't know how long those last, maybe until Leone takes them away or until they fade, but either way it will last long enough for you to erase them all. And if they do fade, he can just place them again or Jasper will make them feel like they love us too much to harm us."

"Edward, Sage, Guiseppe, and Alcee will be waiting in the lobby for us. Edward and Guiseppe will basically act as guards to the other two humans incase the other guards get a hint at what is going on. They will capture anyone who does question or see them and you will erase their memories when we get back."

Cold seeped into my body. I had not realized the most important part of the plan, the part that everything orbited around, was that I did my job right. If I screwed up or forgot a memory, Aro could read their minds and my family would be hurt.

Alice took my hand in her cold one and I felt warmer, more awake and much better. "You'll do fine Bella. Of course you will! We are not even going to hurt anyone. No violence at all, a velvet revolution."

"But what if I forget Alice? When I erased your memories I forgot something. What if I forget? They could come after us…"

"Bella, I know you. You're not stupid, you learn from your mistakes to make the next thing you do better. Next time you will remember to wipe out everything." Alice smiled. "I'm going to call Jasper and tell him about the plan." She stood up from her seat on the couch and walked to another room. Her whispering voice floated to me from there, instructing Jasper on what to do."

"Hey mom, who are these people the Volturi?" Avery asked, his lasagna plate sat beside him on the small table. Red sauce smeared the smooth paper surface with lumpy meat chunks scattered into the mess.

"The monarch of the vampire world. They ensure that vampires do not reveal themselves to humans or go on wild killing sprees. The main of the Volturi is Aro, Caius, and Marcus, behind them is the Volturi Guard which is full of many talented vampires. Edward can read minds and Alice can see into the future based on the decisions made but these vampires have powers beyond your imagine. Well maybe not your imagination." I remembered the drawings of many mystical creatures taped onto his walls. Ever since Avery learned that the magical world in books wove into the regular world's, his mind intrigued itself with other creatures like Jacob and myself. The drawings were not gruesome at all, very creative in fact. "But Jane and Alec are the reasons why the Volturi is invincible. I do not know what Alec's power is but Jane is able to torture someone through his mind. The body is not hurt but the someone feels as though he is in great pain. That is just an example, but each vampire is chosen for their remarkable ability. They asked Edward and Alice to join but both declined, well until recently, Edward did not." My face felt grim and I stopped. That explanation summed up the Volturi enough for Avery.

"How do you know about them?" Avery asked.

I lied down and closed my eyes. He deserved to know, his mother was about to face them as the main weapon against them. "Jacob told you I jumped off a cliff didn't he?"

Pause. "Uh, yeah but I didn't tell him to." His voice defended his actions quickly and I questioned the past according to him.

"Uh huh, sure." I laughed. "I jumped off a cliff, Alice saw, told Rosalie. Rosalie told Edward, Edward thought I was dead." Very brief so I can't feel the pain in my words. "Do you know how vampires die?"

"They're immortal. You can't die."

"Unless someone rips me to shreds and burns every piece. Either a vampire or a werewolf can do that. It is impossible for a vampire to kill themselves so Edward went to the Volturi asking for death. They refused so he was going to make them mad and reveal himself to humans, the only law the Volturi laid down. Alice and I went to stop him, talked to the Volturi, and left." There was much more to that but I did not want to go deeper. Avery noticed that and allowed the words to remain unspoken. I opened my eyes and sat back up on the couch.

A phone snapped shut followed by a graceful Alice stepping into the room. "I don't know why everyone thinks we are so frail just because we're female. Talk about sexist. Edward is going to flip out when he hears that you are the main weapon in the plan." Alice laughed. "Jasper is going to call again when Edward and Leone tell him when Heidi is coming next."

I nodded but my head felt dizzy. My vision blurred and I darkened as though the sun had set. "Alice, Alice!" I tried to call out but the darkness overwhelmed my body. An impact onto the thin rug was the last thing I felt.

_Fuzzy images began to focus in front of me. I felt like I was watching a movie with 3D glasses. Nothing else but the movie could be seen. _

_I watched as the scene sharpened into a dark hallway with only one door at the dead end. Two men stood facing each other. The one facing me had dirty blond hair and red eyes. His face set into an angry expression towards the other man. I could not imagine not recognizing the one who's back faced me even without seeing his face I knew him anywhere. I clenched my fist to keep the overwhelming emotions at bay._

Edward_. I allowed my mind to whisper. The familiar name stroked and soothed my mind. _

"_Demetri can track her. Where would she go?" The unknown man asked him._

_He did not speak while he thought about the answer to the question. The only door in the hall opened and Jasper burst out with a small silver cell phone in hand._

"_Alice called and she has a plan." He announced to the two men, both of their heads were turned toward him. Jasper explained the plan Alice explained to me moments before to the two men in a rush of words no human could understand. _

_When he had finished, Leone looked more convinced but not completely. "What if your Isabella forgets a memory? Then where will we be? She does not have Aro's power, she will not know if she can know all of the instances the Volturi or their Guard have thought of her."_

"_I know her. She will do everything in her power to make sure that we are all safe. Most of the time we have to restrain her from doing so. The woman is completely selfless." Jasper answered for Edward. She saw that the muscles in Edward's back were tensed and his hands had curled into fists._

"_When is Heidi coming back, Leone? I don't keep up to date with those matters." Sweet as honey and smooth as glass, the words excited even more feelings that Bella did not want to bother her, she had to pay attention._

"_Two days. Aro thinks that he has to provide the guest a meal to be hospitable before he leaves." Edward remembered the member of the Volturi's thoughts._

_Jasper nodded. "Alice needs to know if Leone and Alcee are coming with us in order to complete her planning."_

_Leone looked at both of the vampires before him. The sight before me blurred again and darkness invaded the 3D like movie before me. _

"Mom." A young voice came from the dark. Avery, of course. Everything adjusted in front of me. "Mom!"

"Stop screaming, if she is awake she would be able to hear you in a normal tone." Alice.

"Don't tell me what to do, you're not my mother."

"Avery." My voice came out clean and my vision showed the same as before. "Don't be a pest and stop being rude to Alice. She hasn't done anything wrong."

I sat up on the couch. "Do you know what happened to me?"

Alice shrugged. "I don't know. What did you see? Maybe that will decide."

I explained the sight to her in as much detail as I could manage. She looked at me in a strange way then she focused and went into a vision. Or, she tried to.

"You took away my visions!" She whispered; eyes wide.

"I didn't mean to, I don't even know how I did that! How do I give them back?"

"I don't know." Alice paused for a thought. "Have you ever come in contact with any other vampire before me after you changed?"

Shaking my head I answered, "No."

"You never knew you had this power, that's why we didn't know." Alice nodded. "Now we just have to figure out how to reverse it, or if that is even possible."

"When was the last time you had a vision?" I asked her, if we figured out what we did in between the two visions we could limit the possibilities of how the visions came to me.

"When you and Avery were in the kitchen I had one of." She stopped with a coy grin. "I'll let you find out later."

I glared. "Okay then, maybe if we came in contact with each other…"

"But you guys hugged at the door." Avery pointed out.

I bit my lip and nodded. "But we're both wearing long sleeves. Maybe we did not come in contact with each other's skin."

"When you finished telling us the plan you took my hand in yours to make me feel better. When you did I felt warmer and definitely better. Maybe even," I paused trying to remember my feelings correctly. "More powerful?"

"Yes," She agreed. "That is our best bet."

I touched her hand as Aro does when he wishes to read thoughts. My body felt weaker and drained, as though I had ran a mile in five minutes in human form.

Alice's vision clouded and her stare flew off into somewhere I could not see. She snapped back grinning. "Well, Bella. It seems like you have a new power. I congratulate you." Her phone buzzed in vibration mode. "It's Jasper." She flipped the phone open and listened.

"Heidi's coming in two days before I'm supposed to leave." Jasper's voice emitted from the phone.

"Yes, Bella told me. She has a new power. She can take other vampire's powers."

"Is that helpful to us?"

"I'm working that into the plan, if you have any ideas please inform me."

"Of course. Leone and Alcee are joining us in our escape."

"I thought so, the visions were still uncertain but I believed it would have happened anyway."

"I never bet against you. I will be waiting when you come. I love you and will you please be careful?"

"Of course I will be careful. I love you." Her fingers snapped the phone shut and she turned to me again. "If you take Edward's power then you will know if anyone remembers you right away instead of having to guess. You also need to be cautious when taking the Volturi Guard's powers, when they go about their daily life they will wonder how they lost them. Make sure to return the powers, we do not want them questioning anything after we are gone."

I nodded. "Would it be better if I was the only one with Jasper and Leone's powers when I go to the Volturi? That way they won't have to get hurt."

Alice sighed. "Bella, I know it is in your DNA make up to save everyone around you but you need to be looked after too. If there is a fight and you can't watch your back, we could lose. You need back up."

"Humph." I blew away a piece of my hair in front of my face.

She stood from her seat on the couch beside me. "I am going to go hunt. We need as much strength as we can get before we go. Just in case. We have to be careful."

"Should I go now too?" I began to stand as well.

Her eyes glanced at Avery and then back to me shaking her head. "We don't know where the Volturi are at every moment. They already know where you live."

My heart clenched at the thought. Frost shook off the frozen surface. "Yes, of course."

Alice left the house and I picked up the paper plate, a grease stain left on the table's surface. I returned after putting Avery's plate in the garbage with a wet napkin to wipe the mess.

"Could I come with you?" Avery asked me, he still sat in the chair.

I looked at him. His pink flesh pale from the cloudy weather contrasted with his dark green shirt and jeans. A bruise marked a purple spot on his chin from when he tripped on the staircase while I shopped for groceries. His scraggly bronze hair had grown too long. He needed a hair cut. The bright green eyes centered in his face looked vulnerable, the deer's eyes before I snapped its neck and drank its blood last week.

"No, of course not. I don't know why you would even ask that question." My voice sounded like a whisper of fire against a log before the flame catches.

"Why?" Avery stood. "You went to save dad, why can't I go with you to save both of them?"

"When I went it was necessary. Edward would not believe Alice if she told him I was dead. If you go you would only be someone else we would need to protect." I walked away from him to begin unloading the dishwasher.

His steps led into the kitchen to stand next to me. "Then change me into a vampire."

The plate shattered against the tile. "Damn it, Avery! Where did you even get that idea?"

"I want to help." I turned to him and saw his arms by his side, muscles tensed involuntarily. His body recognized his anger and wanted to be ready for a fight. "I can't do that as a human, but I can if I'm a vampire."

"You don't even know how to become a vampire. Do you know what newborns act like? I don't think you realize that most of the vampire population exists off of human blood. I am rare among my kind." I went to look for a broom in the pantry to sweep up the ceramic pieces.

"Then tell me!" He pleaded with a command.

"No, Avery." I set the broom to lean against the counter top. I faced my son. "You don't want or need to deal with my world, is that understood?"

"No, it is not understood." Avery mocked me. "I am going over to Jacob's. Maybe he will help me to understand, since you refuse to."

An image of Avery being in a Volturi Guard's hands formed into my mind. "You are staying right here. Now listen to me." He regarded me with cold eyes. "A new born has no control over their actions; all they want is blood. It took me two years and much practice to get myself to where I am today, even then when you cut yourself I feel thirsty. The Volturi knows how to kill newborns because they act on instinct not with a plan. You would not be a help to us at all." His shoulder jerked back at what I said, wincing. "A human is changed into a vampire when they are bitten. Vampires have venom instead of saliva to immobilize their prey. If this gets into your system it will take three days for you to change. That change will be the worst you have suffered in your entire life. Fire licking and roaming through your veins until it reaches your heart to stop it from beating. The end is the worst."

His eyes had widened from their glaring posture and one of his fingers twitched in fear. "Do you understand now?" My voice had changed to, from the threatening scowled words to the soothing lullaby way a mother speaks to their child when they tell them never to run into the street again.

Avery nodded. I stepped around the dishwasher and embraced him. He was a few inches taller than me with Edward's genes but the effect was not lost.

_**Seconds to Minutes, Minutes to Hours, Hours to Days**_

"And if you smell any vampire at all and I have not called to say that someone is coming, gather the pack. Do not, I repeat, do not try and take them alone."

"Sure, sure." Jacob Black smirked at my expression. "Ave will be fine. Don't be so uptight."

I looked at him as though he were an idiot. "I am about to take on the monarch of the vampire world and you are telling me to calm down?"

"Yes," Jacob placed his hands on my shoulders. "You need to relax. You can do it, I know you can. If I did not believe you would succeed, I would hold you hostage here myself."

His brown face looked the same as it always has, even at 35. "Thanks Jacob. Don't let him out of your sight, please."

"I'll take care of the kid. Now go get'um!"

**Val**


	23. Daylight

I don't own the Twilight Saga

**I don't own the Twilight Saga.**

_**When we last left off…**_

"Yes," Jacob placed his hands on my shoulders. "You need to relax. You can do it, I know you can. If I did not believe you would succeed I would hold you hostage here myself."

His brown face looked the same as it always had, even at 35. "Thanks Jacob. Don't let him out of your sight, please."

"I'll take care of the kid. Now go get'um!"

**Now**

"_I am going to be killed if I go through with this, you realize that don't you?"_

"_Neither of them would ever kill you. Come on, don't you want to help?"_

"_Yeah, but…"_

"_Look, you don't have to come. I can get there by myself. I have a bank account I could use."_

"_It would be a gruesome death if I let that happen. I don't know."_

"_We would be helping. Especially you with all your moves and stuff."_

"_So that's what it's called now, stuff. I am surely going to die for this but ok. Let's go." Pause. "Only if you are sure we will help."_

"_Of course."_

_**At the same time**_

"No, I don't think so. Too many ruffles, don't you think?"

"I guess. I just don't like the entire magazine, can we get a different catalog?"

"Sorry sweetie, this is all we have."

Sage Marie Cullen groaned. "Then I will continue wearing what I have been."

Alcee scoffed. "Psh, none of that stuff fits. You had a major growth spurt in the last year honey."

The two lied on the rug of Sage's room looking through a magazine of some company neither of them had heard of. Sage's wardrobe had begun to look a little shabby and Alcee decided to help her pick out new clothes.

"Well why do I need a dress? It isn't like I'm going anywhere formal." At the turn of the page, the in paper sliced though the skin on Sage's fingertip. "Well that sucks."

Alcee nodded beginning to bite her nails. "Here." She rose and grabbed a plastic case underneath Sage's bed. She took out gauze, alcohol, and a bandage.

"I don't think we need to disinfect it, Alcee. It's just a paper cut." Sage watched her warily. She would not admit it but she was very tired. Nightmares about Guiseppe's injuries and Felix kept her awake at night. The occurrences went unnoticed by her father but she couldn't tell for sure. "I think I'm going to take a nap when you finish with this."

"Good idea, you look horrible."

"Thanks Alcee. I appreciate it. Do you know where my dad and Jasper are? Where's Leone too?" Sage asked questioning the lack of vampires around the two of them.

"I don't know." Her mouth pressed its lips together in what could have been concentration. "None of them told me anything, just that they would be back soon.

"Do we know where Felix is?" Sage whispered, her hand shook a bit.

"Yes, stalking the entrance on the throne room. He is very thirsty." A buzzing came from the stone floor of the room. Alcee took up her phone and pressed the green talk button. "Yes? Oh yeah, of course. I'll see you there then." She took the phone away from her ear; her face looked tense with her thin mouth and hard eyes. "I need to go to the front desk for a few minutes, do you mind coming with me? I know you're tired but it will just be for a while."

Sage shrugged. "Yeah, I'm not even that tired. I'll be fine."

In the lobby Jasper sat in one of the sofa chairs flipping through a magazine. His posture was not relaxed in the least when Sage and Alcee entered the room.

"Hey Jasper. What are you doing?" Sage sank into the chair next to him. Alcee placed herself on the swivel chair and began typing up something official Sage guessed.

"Waiting for Edward, he went to see that werewolf." His fingers flipped through the pages too quickly to be paying any attention to the words or pictures. The alabaster nose on his face wrinkled and he looked at her finger. "Cut yourself?"

"Yeah."

"You shouldn't be walking around the castle with that." Jasper scolded lightly.

"I've ran with worse."

He nodded, "Of course. Alice nearly fainted after she saw that. She almost thought you had died when she couldn't see your future anymore. Turns out it was only the werewolf. What a relief to her."

"I'll bet." Sage rubbed her arms. She did not like it when people worried themselves over her. What good did it do? "Are you sure my dad went down there without me?"

Jasper nodded. "Yes."

'That's weird.' She thought. 'Why didn't he tell me? He knows how much I go down there. Maybe he thought I needed a break from Guiseppe. But it is an entire week until I see him again. How could he do that? Or maybe he doesn't approve of us, of him. Maybe he's going into Father Mode. He is probably questioning him right now about what he plans to do when he grows up and all of that kind of things. Poor Guiseppe.'

The door to the outside opened and a tall man with brown skin walked along with a pale boy, who looked around the same age as Sage. His green eyes and parts of his facial features reminded her of someone but she could not remember at the moment. Green eyes were uncommon in the castle only Sage and Alcee had different colored eyes from red. The taller man with dark skin reminded her of Guiseppe.

Alcee turned in her chair. "Excuse me, sirs, who are you?"

Jasper put down his magazine to look at the two incomers. "Jacob Black? What are you doing here?"

"I was crazy enough to be talked into all of this." Jacob surveyed the area and visibly relaxed at the few occupants.

"Does Bella know you're here?" Jasper inquired.

"That's the crazy part. She's going to kill me when she finds out I brought Ave, even though technically I followed him. Is she here yet?" Jacob walked in to sit beside Jasper although he sat as far as the chair would allow from her vampire uncle. The boy beside him followed close beside him on the next chair.

"No. We're still waiting." Jasper's eyes flickered to Sage and Alcee's did the same.

"We caught an early flight then." Jacob told the boy whose eyes would not leave her. Sage shifted and bit her lip.

"Excuse me, who are both of you? Neither of you are vampires." Alcee had walked over to their area of chairs.

The tanned man stuck out his hand to her and grinned. "I'm Jacob Black."

The boy allowed his eyes to shift people. "Avery Cullen."

Alcee's eyes widened. "Cullen? You're Edward's son? I thought he only had a daughter."

"Twins in fact." Avery muttered still staring at Sage. He smiled at her. "Hi, I'm your brother."

Sage thought she was going to pass out. "What?" She could barely choke out.

He nodded. "We were separated at birth by the Volturi; well that's what Alice said. Don't worry, I grew not knowing you existed either."

"This is bizarre. Almost as bizarre as-"

"The Mr. Kite scene in Across the Universe?"

"What?" Sage didn't recognize either phrase.

"You've never seen that movie?"

She shook her head. "Aro thought that television was unnecessary for my development." The exact wording still remained in her head. "I grew up with books."

Avery shrugged. "Yeah, me too but the occasional movie is cool."

"You both have the same eyes." Alcee remarked. "Sage's hair is browner though. You look sort of like your dad but more like your mom; I guess it is because I don't see a lot of him in you. Sage looks a lot like her dad."

"Thanks Alcee." Sage eyes rolled. "Why are you guys here?"

"To help with the escape plan of course." Jacob told her leaning back in his chair.

"What are you talking about?" Sage did not understand. They were escaping?

"Jacob, you're an idiot." Jasper sighed. "Edward didn't want her to know until Bella came and you're wrong. Not only is Bella going to kill you, but Edward is going to help."

"What are you talking about? What did he not want me to know?" Her eyes glared at the rest of the group questioningly. Beside her, Alcee looked ashamed.

"We're escaping because my wife Alice has a plan. Your mother and Alice are on their way to Volterra right now to help us since your mother is the best weapon we have." Jasper explained quietly next to her ear. Not even a vampire could hear him from outside the door. He backed away from her. "Your father did not want you to know and worry."

Sage grumbled out, "Of course he didn't." Then, louder, she asked, "Does Guiseppe know?"

"He is telling him right now. Getting Guiseppe out of the castle without anyone noticing is going to be the most difficult part of the escape. His smell is going to be a challenge." Jasper answered her question.

"So what do I do?" Sage asked the others who knew all about this secret plan.

"Nothing, just stay here and wait to leave when we tell you to. Your mother will be arriving shortly."

"My mother…" The only mother Sage had ever known was Alcee. Who was this woman and what was she like? How would she react to her long lost daughter? The one she didn't know existed for years. Would she approve of Sage? Would Sage approve of her? By the way her father is so infatuated with her gave Sage belief that she would be nice, if her father approved then she could not be some evil stepmother type. Correct? She hoped so.

"She's nice, right?" Sage asked her brother. She didn't know him but he knew her mother.

"Yeah, awesome really." He had a faraway look in his eyes. "She will do anything to make you happy and safe. Which is why she's going to kill Jake for bringing me here." He shrugged, but his voice held much respect for his mother that she had never heard before except for when Edward spoke of her. "You should have seen the way she reacted when Alice told her what Felix did to you. Alice had to slap her just to make her come out of hysterics."

If a woman cared for a girl she had never met and did not know at all, she could love her with both of those properties. Hopefully.

"Cool."

"Uh," Avery fidgeted with his clothes and Sage looked at him.

"What's wrong with you?" She asked.

He rubbed the back of his head and looked up, trying to look uncaring and that the question he asked next was unimportant. The answer really meant the world to him, though. "What is my dad like?"

"Oh." Sage didn't see the reason for all of the nervousness. He looked like he was about to ask her to go on a date. If they hadn't been related that is. "Yeah he's cool. Always plays with me and stuff. Hates whoever hurts me, which doesn't happen often since he's way over protective, but he has to because of where we are. I can't wander off alone. I always have to be with a vampire that he approves of. But he lets me stay in the dungeon alone with Guiseppe because he knows how I feel about him. I guess cause he felt it too, you know?"

"Who?"

Her head recoiled back, instinctively trying to back away from a place of discomfort. "My boyfriend, sort of." But it felt so much more than that. The word did not convey the feelings that she felt for him.

"Woah," he scrutinized her making her shift again. "Are you guys serious, like really serious?"

"Well, yeah." She swiveled her thumbs together over and over, watching them dance. Her cheeks flamed. "Totally and completely." Even though everyone there, except for Jacob and Avery, knew about her infatuation and love with Guiseppe, she hated admitting out loud while under her newfound-brother's microscopic gaze.

"Aren't you really young to be having a serious relationship with a guy?"

"Well what about you?! What about your love life?" She burst out.

Embarrassed he looked away. "I've never had a girlfriend."

Sage looked away, embarrassed too. "Oh. Sorry."

Jacob then spoke up. "I've never had a serious relationship, if that makes you feel better buddy."

"We know." Jasper sighed.

"Jacob Black!" A semi-screech came from the doorway. All heads whirled to look at the two new visitors. A short black haired woman accompanied by a taller brunette. Both of them immensely beautiful with topaz colored eyes. Vampires, strange colored eyed vampires like Jasper but still vampires. "Why the hell is my son here?!" The brunette nearly shouted again, lowering her voice to not attract attention.

"Bella, Alice, we've been waiting for you." Jasper interjected. He resumed his magazine reading.

The brunette strode toward their group of chairs. "I called your cellphone five times, with no answer."

"No service here. I have Verizon." Jacob muttered.

"I called your house, again, no answer. I called Billy. You know what he said? 'I think they went to Italy to see you Bella.'" She imitated a man's voice. "How do you think my reaction was to that?"

"Similar to this encounter."

"If I wasn't busy right now, you would be so dead." Her finger pointed at him while her eyes gave him a scathing glare.

"We've been talking about his impending doom this whole time." Jasper told her. She paid no mind but the short black haired girl pecked him on the check and held his hand before setting herself on the arm of the chair.

"And you," She turned to Avery. "Are so lucky we're in Italy because when we get home you will not be seeing daylight for a while unless you go to school."

The brunette took a deep breath and sighed turning to Jasper. "It's good to see you too Jasper." She smiled. Standing next to Jasper was Alcee. The brunette woman stuck out a hand in greeting. "Isabella Swan but Bella to friends."

"Glad to be a friend of Miss Swan." Alcee grinned to her. "I've heard so much about you."

Her eyes held the same emotion Sage's father's had when he spoke about his love. The longing to be with their other half, the incompletion they have felt all these years and the love they carry as a burden and a joy. "Where is he?"

Alcee grimaced. "He's in the dungeon looking after the werewolf, preparing for the escape. He may be here soon to watch us." Alcee meant Sage and herself, which now also included Jacob and Avery.

The brunette woman nodded and turned to Sage. Feeling stupid sitting, Sage stood up to greet her.

"Uh, I'm Sage." She said looking down at her shoes. Her gaze moved to look at the woman in front of her and Sage stuck out her hand.

"Of course, I would know you anywhere. You are my daughter." Sage's mother grabbed her in her arms and Sage felt so much better. She had not done anything but that was all that could be needed.

**Val**


	24. Feign

I own nothing of the Twilight Saga

**I own nothing of the Twilight Saga**

_**When we last left off…**_

_The brunette woman nodded and turned to Sage. Feeling stupid sitting, Sage stood up to greet her. _

"_Uh, I'm Sage." She said looking down at her shoes. Her gaze moved to look at the woman in front of her and Sage stuck out her hand._

"_Of course, I would know you anywhere. You are my daughter." Sage's mother grabbed her in her arms and Sage felt so much better. She had not done anything but that was all that could be needed._

**Now**

"Where is Leone?" Alice searched the room for the dirty blond vampire.

"He's on his way; Aro had to ask something from him," Jasper answered.

"I need images and names of the people I'm erasing from memory." Bella inserted into the last minute adjustment plans. "It won't be like what I did to you Alice, what I did then was put a heavy blanket over your memories of me. This time I will be erasing them permanently. I don't know if Aro would be able to lift the blanket with his power, so I need to basically delete them."

"Is that harder?"

Bella shrugged at Alice's question. "I don't know. I've never really tried it with a vampire. I guess it could be since vampires have perfect memories, but maybe not."

"What do I do?" Jacob asked from his spot next to Avery.

"Stay here and listen to me this time." Bella glared at Jacob. "Avery, Sage, and Alcee will need to be watched in case someone happens upon them. If any vampire does see Avery, Sage or Alcee, hold him here and we'll erase their memory of us."

A door opened and everyone tensed before they saw that it was Leone who had entered. He sniffed the air.

"Why is another werewolf here? I thought Edward was with Guiseppe." He looked at Jacob with curiosity.

"I'm Jacob Black." He held out his hand to the new vampire.

"Leone." His hand took the other's even though the warmth discomforted his skin.

"Another? I thought this was a castle of vampires." Avery questioned.

"One of the head vampires is holding a werewolf here." Alcee answered smiling at Sage.

"Shut up, Alcee. Now. Go greet your mate." Alcee stuck her tongue at Sage's response and left to stand beside Leone.

"Wait, Guiseppe is the werewolf?" With an astonished face Avery looked at Sage. "You're dating a werewolf?"

"She's probably in love with a vampire too." Jacob grumbled. "Like mother like daughter."

"Who are you?" Leone asked Avery.

"Edward's son, my mom's right there." He pointed to Bella sitting on the floor by Sage's chair. She stood but did not grab his hand.

"Isabella Swan."

"Ah, so you're the Isabella everyone's talking about." Leone grinned.

"Unfortunately." Bella's grimace helped disdain the word.

"I never knew Edward had a son." Leone inspected Avery with his eyes.

"I never knew I had a sister." Avery still focused all of his attention on Sage. "You never answered me."

"Yes, alright! Jeez." Sage leaned back sighing exasperatedly. "I don't see why it's such a big deal to everyone."

"A werewolf. That's interesting." Bella whispered to herself.

"Okay people, let's focus. Everyone is here." Alice announced speaking over the unimportant conversations. "Edward will probably meet us halfway so that is alright. What is the deal on the werewolf situation?"

"Edward is coming here and leaving the werewolf there. The dungeon is on the way back to the lobby from the throne room if we take a detour." Leone answered. "It's better to take him out at the last moment than having him wait in the lobby and having to explain the smell afterwards. Jacob is bad enough."

"When is Heidi coming, has she even left yet?"

"She is about to leave. The Volturi and she are only making small conversations before she leaves to get the people."

"How long could that last?"

"An hour possibly. The Volturi are never in a rush."

"Are all of the guards who know of you, Edward, Alcee, or Sage there?"

"Yes."

**Bpov**

"Bella? Are you ready?" Alice turned to me.

"Sure, let's go." I squeezed my daughter's hand once.

"Be careful, I know these guys. They're not friendly at all." Sage warned me.

My heart wept at that, she should not have had to face these vicious creatures all these years. She could have lived a better life if it had not been for Aro.

I stroked her cheek; she looked so much like Edward. I kissed her forehead. "Of course. Watch out for your brother."

Avery stood and walked to me. "Watch your back. I don't know anything about these people but they're obviously bad." His arms wrapped around my body and I nodded.

"Yes, don't do anything else stupid." I reminded him and walked to where Jasper and Leone waited for me. They had already said their goodbyes. Nodding to both of them, we strode out the door.

Names, faces, descriptions, and mentions. Everything had to be gone.

We walked down the hallway fairly lit by florescent lights wary of anyone passing.

"We should try to find Fausto first, that way we know who he is. We can't have him changing into other people to confuse us." Leone advised me.

"Yes," I whispered back. Anything louder made me feel exposed. Jasper and I followed Leone as he led the way, Jasper almost walked backwards to keep an eye out for anyone behind us. "Alice told you of my power, correct?"

"Yes, and Jasper informed me." Leone confirmed her.

"Then we should find Demetri, keep him occupied with your images while we find the others and erase all of their memories. Are you able to do that? Go away from someone and come back and have him still distracted?"

"Yes, the images are there until I turn them off in a way."

"Okay, where is Demetri?"

"The last time I saw him, he was leaving the throne room and heading to the armory." Leone pointed in the general direction he spoke of.

"To the armory then." I nodded and we continued down the dreary halls.

_**At the Same Time**_

"So we're just going to sit here?"

"Yup."

"We can't do anything to help?"

"Nope."

"Ugh." Sage sunk into an armchair, her feet and arms spread out wide and her back slouched against the material. As soon as she had placed her body in the seat, it jumped up again.

"But couldn't I-"

"No." Alice sighed. "Anything that you are planning to do will not work Sage. Relax. The plan will go smoothly without a hitch, but for that to happen you must remain here and stay safe."

"This is why your dad didn't want to tell you." Alcee remarked.

"Could I-"

Alice stood from her place on Jasper's former seat. "Look, you two." She pointed at both Sage and Avery. "I know you guys love your parents and really want to help with this rescue mission, but that is not going to happen. You and you are both human. That means you are fragile and will be hurt easily. A great way of helping would be to stay here and amuse yourselves so that I can concentrate. Agreed?"

The twins both mumbled something that sounded like an agreement.

"Good." Alice slid her form back into the chair and closed her eyes in a sleeping fashion.

Before anyone could react, the door of the room opened to another vampire. Everyone except for Alice jumped and each of their hearts hammered dangerously.

"Relax." Alice murmured, her eyes still closed.

Sage was the first to comply. "Why didn't you tell me about the plan?"

Edward looked at his daughter and smiled. "I knew you would find out eventually when Alice arrived. I wanted to keep you from stressing."

"Yeah, great deal of good that did me. There was absolutely no warning when my mother and my brother showed up."

The red in Edward's eyes darkened and he looked around the room to Alice. "You weren't supposed to bring him here."

The same awkward feeling that Sage felt when Bella first saw her came to Avery. He rubbed his arm with his right hand and stood clumsily. Yes, this man did have red eyes like the ones his mother warned about, the ones that showed a murderer. But they also meant great sacrifice and pain. Avery knew this after Alice's story and respected this man greatly for what he did for his mother. "Uh, she didn't bring me here. It was actually Jacob. Uh, hi. I'm your son, Avery."

Edward forgot to feel the anger towards the werewolf for endangering the boy before him, because the boy before him was his son. His son, who he never thought could exist when he first changed. The child Bella gave him. Shock was more pronounced than when he knew that Sage was his daughter because he already felt that she was his daughter. But with Avery he had never known him before. He had never thought it to be possible that he could bring someone else into this world. Of course Bella had made it all possible, how could someone as amazing as she, not?

Edward nodded to him and his dark eyes glowed. He enveloped him with his stone arms and both of them felt complete. During the entire meeting neither had thought of what the other would see, only how good it felt to finally know the other existed.

When they separated with smiles each on their face, Sage was the one who first spoke. "So why are you here? Aren't you supposed to be helping them erase memories?"

Edward nodded to his daughter. "Yes, but I came to deliver this letter. Guiseppe wished for me to give it to you. As for you Jacob Black I'm not as busy as Bella was…"

A white envelope showed in Edward's hand. Sage took the paper and opened the letter, still sealed. She took great in care doing this, acknowledging the two vampires in the room. The black ink bled through the paper with startling contrast and she almost paled as white as the paper upon reading the first few lines.

_Dear our lovely Sage,_

_Your werewolf is here with me and will be in much pain unless you comply with my rules. He doesn't feel very up to fighting and is wounded very easily, so pay close attention. I cannot promise that he will live through all that I do to him. Escape from where ever you are and come to the dungeon, quickly. You have succeeded at this before; I doubt you will have much difficulty evading your father and his companions again. It will be exquisite seeing you again, my dear Sage, so please hurry. At three o'clock I will assume you are not coming. I do not think your werewolf will appreciate that. _

_Until then,_

_Felix_

Sage could have cried then. Why? Why when they were all so close to leaving this horrid place to live in a world like her books did Felix have to go and _ruin _everything? She took a deep breath to try and hold her sobs and frustration in. How unfair of him to do this! Her stomach clenched and unclenched and her lungs strained because they needed to choke out a sob.

Whatever. As long as Guiseppe could get out she would be fine.

The note crumpled and poked in her clenched hand and she stuffed it into the pocket of her jeans. She ran her fingers over her eyebrows to smooth the frustration creases.

"What happened? Did your boyfriend upset you?" Sage jumped and turned around. She had not accustomed herself to having a new brother, much less an observant one.

"Uh, no. I just want to reply but I can't right now." She fidgeted with a strand of her hair that had fallen out of her French braid.

Avery cut his eyes at his sister, taking in her nervous appearance. "I don't think so."

Sage feigned anger, which did not seem as hard as she thought it would. This boy was delaying her from coming up with a plan with stupid questions. "What do you mean you don't think so? Unless _you_ can just waltz through those halls without tempting someone to take a bite, and I seriously doubt you can."

He flinched at the words and the images they created. Most of the images were based on vampire movies, but he imagined that the real things would be much worse than the purple vampire on Sesame Street. "You know that is not what I meant; I don't think you're telling the truth." He whispered. She obviously didn't want this to be a big thing so he had to show that he would not tell anyone.

Sage regarded him cautiously and tried one last time to make him believe her. "Nothing is wrong, just forget about it. Everything is fine."

"I could help you." He insisted.

Those words were what broke her. She needed the help. How would she save Guiseppe? Sage didn't even have a good idea to do that by herself. "It might be life-threatening."

Avery shrugged. "Even with a vampire as a mother and a werewolf as a best friend, my life has been pretty boring up until now."

She sighed and pulled out the letter, smoothing it across the cloth covering her thigh. "Here, I just got this note, but it's not from my boyfriend." She whispered.

His eyes skimmed over the page quickly, noticing her anxiety. He handed the paper back to her where she crumpled it up and shoved it back into her pocket.

"I just need a plan to get out of here and stall them for a while." Sage told him, thinking of distractions. Distractions from vampires meant going to the library. When in the library she met Felix for the first time. He distracted Edward and Leone from following him...

"I have a plan but you're going to have to help."

"I already volunteered, just explain it to me."

**Rosslie **


	25. Wool

I own nothing of the Twilight Saga

**I own nothing of the Twilight Saga**

_**When we last left off…**_

"_I just need a plan to get out of here and stall them for a while." Sage told him, thinking of distractions. Distractions from vampires meant going to the library. When in the library she met Felix for the first time. He distracted Edward and Leone from following him..._

"_I have a plan but you're going to have to help."_

"_I already volunteered, just explain it to me." _

**Now**

"So why do you need this picture so badly?"

"Because it's important to me." Sage Marie Cullen added a little sniffle and teary eyes to her act. "I mean, what would happen if this doesn't work, or or even…"

"See," Alcee pointed out. "This is exactly why your father didn't want to tell you the plan, because you'd freak out like this." She sighed. "But I'll print out the picture if you need it so badly."

Sage grinned and felt vile for putting Alcee in this position. "Thank you Alcee, you're wonderful."

"Yes yes, now which one is it that you wanted?"

Sage pointed to the one with her and her dad standing together in the maze of rose bushes. "That one."

Alcee printed the image out on glossy photo paper and handed it to Sage. "There, is that all?"

The picture was perfectly proportioned on the white paper, each white side equally spaced out so that there was only an inch between the edge and the photo. "I don't know. I don't really like the white border on this." Sage said even though she did. "Do you think we could cut it off? You have a paper cutter, right?"

Alcee nodded and pulled out the device from underneath the desk. "Here."

Sage placed the paper onto the grid of the paper cutter. She deliberately made the paper lie at a strange angle and held the blade ready to cut. "Is this right Alcee?"

From the corner of her eye she could see Alcee shake her head and come behind her to help. "No, not at all. Like this." She straightened the paper and put her hands onto Sage's, just as expected. "Hold the blade like this and squint your eyes so that you can see if it is aligned correctly. Then you have to swipe the blade down fast so that you don't just bend the paper instead of cut it…"

As Alcee showed Sage how to properly cut a photo, Avery ran towards Jacob, shouting about an amazing view from a window that was really actually mediocre. He ran into Alcee's back on purpose, causing her to sway and lose her balance around Sage, her hands still placed on Sage's. Sage then moved the photo Alcee's hand was still placed on and loosened her grip on the heavy blade. The sharp edge dug deep into the outside skin of Alcee's left hand, between her pointer finger and thumb.

"Aw, shit!" Alcee screamed. "Jesus, my hand!"

Sage rushed to pick up the blade and scream right on cue. "Oh my God Alcee! I'm so sorry!" And she was sorry. She would not say that she didn't mean to because she _did_ mean to. She needed the distraction. What was one cut on the hand to Guiseppe's life?

As predicted, Alice and Edward rushed over to Alcee. Alice examined the hand while Edward searched for the first aid kit. A few tears slipped out of Alcee's eyes but she nodded to Sage.

"It's okay, it was an accident. You didn't mean to. These things happen."

And then Sage had to cry. Because Alcee did not know that she did do it on purpose and thought that Sage was a good girl. But Sage felt horrible and terrible and all things because she was tired, nervous, and anxious because as much as she wanted to stay and make sure that Alcee turned out all right, she had to save Guiseppe.

"Thank you Alcee." Sage whispered and left her to squeeze Alice's hand when Edward picked up the needle to put in the anesthesia. Her hand would need stitches. Jacob had come to stand and watch.

Sage and Avery both plugged their noses and backed away, pretending to be horrified by the sight and smell of blood pouring from the wound. As stealthily as the twins could manage, they slipped through the double doors and into the Volturi Castles halls.

As soon as the doors closed, Sage began running with Avery behind her.

"And you're sure you know where you're going? I don't think we can afford getting lost. Last time I checked it was two thirty." Avery said as he caught up with her.

"Completely. I've been this way hundreds of times. We need to run fast because once their done stitching her up they'll be after us and we haven't exactly left a covered trail."

Avery agreed and they both sped up. "How long do you think it'll take getting there?"

"Five minutes maybe, less the faster we run."

The echo of their footsteps blended with their heavy breaths down the halls. Sage turned a corner sharply and sped up even faster. Avery did not regret his excessive training for gold in his track competition. Sage's legs ached but she wouldn't acknowledge their cries, her head filled with the memories of Guiseppe's screams and those pushed her even further.

At the dead end they skidded to a stop and Sage hastily turned the knob to the dungeon's door. Both of their breaths had turned to pants, but neither of them paused to catch the running breaths.

"Don't follow me in." She told him before pushing the door open, too tired and hurried to enforce her command. Avery followed Sage down the dark steps further into the darkness. No light lit the dungeon, so the twins stood lost in the room, their breaths too loud in their ears and too human.

"Sage," She turned her head to face the voice she longed for in the far corner and she walked to it but Avery's hand on her arm stopped her. "You are such an idiot, Sage."

"No she's not." Another voice whispered everywhere. "She's a good little girl. And look, she even brought me dessert. Now when I finish her I can have the little boy who's with her."

Sage couldn't believe that she had the courage to even speak to the man who held her life in his claws, but imminent death makes everyone do surprising things. "Imagine him as the delivery boy, Felix and I'm the pizza, or Chinese food, whatever your pleasure. You don't eat him, you eat me."

"I was never very good with my imagination, but we could play it your way. You may leave, boy, but you best hurry. I haven't had anything to drink in weeks."

When Avery did not move from her side she nudged his ribs. "Go, stupid."

"No," and he shifted in front of her. "I'm going to protect you."

Sage couldn't believe this. "You obviously haven't been around the more natural vampires. I don't think you realize how strong this guy is."

"5," Felix started counting down, increasing Sage's fear for her death and the one she would have caused for her brother.

"Don't be stupid, Ave." Sage pleaded him.

"4."

Avery remembered back when he was small and first learned his mother and his best friend were unnatural. When Jacob told him the scary stories of his tribe and that his mother could kill him if she lost control. When he ran away because he was too scared and confused to know what was good and what was bad.

"3."

When his mother came after him and comforted him to go home. When she carried him home after she told him that she was like Superman, _"We are super strong and super fast_". She had said. A hero in his eyes.

He knew that Felix was super strong and super fast, like his mother and his father. But he wasn't like superman at all. He was the villain. "_My eyes are gold because I drink animal blood, but some vampires are murderers, which is why their eyes are red."_

"2."

Avery wasn't super strong or super fast. He wasn't a superhero like Superman. But just because he wasn't any of those things he still couldn't leave his sister behind with this maniac. Her blood would be on both of their hands. Avery knew he would never be able to wash it away.

"So what's it going to be boy? Shall I count down to my final number?" He knew Felix stood right in front of him because he could feel the sweet breath across his face. The vampire had already beaten him in height by at least five inches.

"Avery," His sister warned, but he already knew what could happen. He didn't need warnings. They only increased his want to stay. Whatever warnings applied to him would be much worse for his sister.

"I'm not moving." He told both of them, stern and determined.

Avery could see a faint glint of Felix's teeth in the darkness. "I can help with that. One."

Fingers and nails dug into his rib cage, snapping one, no two, too many to count now. Too much pain blocking the rest of his senses. He cried out and he heard a scream. Faintly, he could see lights had snapped on for Sage. Felix wanted her to see everything.

"Stop it!" She screamed. "It's me! Remember! It's me you want to hurt! Me!"

Blood flowed from Avery's stomach and soaked his shirt. His eyes were squeezed shut and his hands pushed hard against Felix's arms, thinly woven muscles straining underneath his sleeves.

"Stop it!" She screamed even louder than before. "You asked for _me_!"

Felix threw Avery against a stone wall, the impact and quick loss of blood knocking him out easily. "I'm sorry for the delay, but if you hadn't brought distractions I would have attended to you sooner."

She looked away from her unconscious brother and around the room. In the corner opposite her sat Guiseppe, all four of his limbs broken at odd angles. No one would help her this time and she could not even be glad for her sacrifice.

"Aw, now don't cry." Felix wiped off a tear with his cold hands. She flinched away but he held her chin. "Your brother will die, your werewolf will die, and if you're lucky, I'll tell Aro of all this and your father will die. Your mother will undoubtedly come and ask for her own death. You're sacrifice was for nothing, dear Sage." He stroked her wet cheek. "At least you all go down together, as a family. One big happy family."

**Rosslie**


	26. Pink

I own nothing of the Twilight Saga

**I own nothing of the Twilight Saga**

_**When we last left off…**_

"_Aw, now don't cry." Felix wiped off a tear with his cold hands. She flinched away but he held her chin. "Your brother will die, your werewolf will die and, if you're lucky, I'll tell Aro of all this and your father will die. Your mother will undoubtedly come and ask for her own death. You're sacrifice was for nothing, dear Sage." He stroked her wet cheek. "At least you all go down together, as a family. One big happy family."_

**Now**

**Bella**

"What is it?" I asked.

Jasper, Leone, and I had just finished erasing the Volturi's memory. We only had to erase Felix and Demetri's minds, and anyone else we came across. We just stopped because Jasper and Leone took on strange faces, emotions such as lust, longing, and worry crossed their faces.

Then I smelled it. The blood called strongly to me but I have resisted worse. It wasn't my control that worried me. The scent was what caused the worry. I smelled that scent everyday for ten years ever since I returned to my family after becoming a vampire.

_Avery_. My mind whispered and the worse part of the scent had to be that it smelled fresh.

"I'll go get Edward, don't give in to the blood lust Bella." Jasper told me but I didn't need the reminder.

I raced down the hall to the source of the blood, faintly acknowledging the fact that Leone followed me. I stopped at a dead in and flew into the first door that I came across. My breathing came uncommonly fast for a vampire.

"Oh my God." I whispered when I reached the bottom of the stairway. I screamed and the vampire who had his hands around my daughter's face turned toward me and then slumped against the wall next to the two.

"Avery," I say over and over again. His blood is soaked through and his eyes were closed as if he slept slumped against the wall. Sobs still wracked my body but I focused enough to keep examining him even though I lacked a medical degree. His head had blood coming from the back I lifted his bloody red shirt and saw gauges sliding up and down his ribs, which poked out at ugly, odd angles. Through the blood, I could see a yellowed spot where his liver hid under his skin. I knew enough to know what that meant and I didn't bother to stop my dry sobs while I cradled my son's dying body

_**At the Same Time**_…

**Sage**

Sage Marie Cullen jumped as the body of her attacker slumped against her, unconscious. The breaths still came quickly, but she pushed against his limp form with enough force to have him tip over and fall onto the floor. Sobs echoed through the dungeon but she felt too numb to acknowledge anything. What was going on? Why wasn't Avery moving and why had her mother started sobbing even harder now?

Leone rushed over to Guiseppe and snapped his chains. After accomplishing this he scooped up Sage and led Guiseppe up the stairs.

She regretfully broke out of it when the door locked closed.

"No!" She screamed against Leone's hold on her. He let go and she fell to the floor but she didn't even feel the impact on her knees. "No! I need to be with him! It's because of me! Me!" She sobbed and pounded against the door, her knuckles turning red and then finally bleeding. "No!"

Warm hands engulfed hers and she fought. "No! I need to be there! No! He wasn't moving! Let _go!_" She cried and screamed. Her body would not stop shaking and she could not hold herself together even if she tried. She heard faint footsteps coming from somewhere but refused to recognize them. Calm waves drifted onto the shore of her emotions but she shoved them away. "It's my fault. Mine. Mine." She kept muttering.

"Shh…" A voice tried to soothe her. "No, it's not. You tried. You tried. He was just stronger. And that is not your fault either."

"No, it is…"

Strong hands moved her hair that stuck to her sticky wet cheeks. "Sage…"

She cried for him. The friend's hand she sliced for nothing. The new brother she condemned to death. The new mother's heart she broke. The new father's heart she broke. The world she lived in and why it was so terrible. The lost chance to leave and never look back. And the disgusting hatred she had for the one who ruined it.

Guiseppe cradled her and kept whispering to her until she just lied in his arms but she hadn't fallen asleep. He knew she couldn't.

**Edward**

The silver edges of the medical scissors snipped the knotted thread ending the stitches. Alcee had held on to Alice's hand even when she could not feel anything. Seeing the needle going through her skin didn't comfort her at all. Jacob had watched the whole time, as if an interesting brain surgery had been performed instead of a couple of stitches to a hand.

Alice gasped and nothing showed in her mind but empty darkness. "They're both gone."

Then Jasper came through the door. Edward saw and smelt the blood through his memories and knew something had gone wrong. They both raced out followed by Alice (carrying Alcee) and Jacob. At the door of the dungeon, Edward saw Guiseppe cradling Sage who unblinkingly stared at the stone wall before her. Guiseppe just stroked her hair. Leone stood in front of the door where loud sobs emanated from.

Once she had been put on her feet again, Alcee went over to Sage tried to talk to her, but Guiseppe just shook his head telling her not to try. Alice followed her, without the werewolf in the dungeon room, she had seen enough.

Leone approached Jacob and Edward, "We arrived and I was able to block his mind with plain black images, so he is nearly unconscious at the moment. We guess Avery tried to protect her because he was the only one injured…"

"Did you see how bad they were?" Edward whispered. Jacob looked down the hallway where they came from, still listening to Leone speak.

Leone nodded. "It looked like three broken ribs and maybe a concussion. But once Bella lifted his shirt I could see a yellow spot forming right here." He circled the area over his liver. Edward's face turned to stone. Alice looked up at him. Jacob continued staring. Sage began to murmur again.

"_My fault_."

"We'll have to change him." Leone stated.

Jacob began to shake his head.

Edward blinked and frowned. "He's only fifteen. A few weeks from sixteen."

"_Mine."_

"He'll die either way." Leone whispered.

Jacob looked at the door where the sobs came from.

Edward sighed. "There are no other options."

"_Mine. Mine."_

"No." Leone declared.

Jacob sat down on the stone floor and put his head in his hands.

Edward nodded. "Then we have to do it now I suppose."

"_I need to be with him. It's because of me."_

"Yes." Leone agreed.

Jacob cried into his hands.

Edward opened the door and heard the sobs. "I can't go in there."

"_Let go."_

"Do you want me to do it?" Leone noticed the cracks in the mask.

Jacob couldn't move.

Edward kneeled over and broke down slowly, gasping for breath.

"_Let go."_

"Edward?" Leone put his hand on his shoulder.

Jacob couldn't see with tears in his eyes.

Edward propped his knee up and stood, his body convulsing with dry sobs. "No. I have to do it."

"Let go!" Sage stood up from Guiseppe's cradle, pushed past Edward and stepped down the stairs. She didn't allow her body to freeze at the bottom when she saw the pool of blood, she kept going. She kneeled next to her quiet mother and leaned on her as her jeans absorbed the blood. Both of them rocked the dying boy in their arms.

One, two, three, four and on and on continued the steps down the stairway. Heavy and foreshadowing they carried death on their toes. Edward kneeled down beside Bella. The two finally reunited and despite death hovering in their mouths they felt complete. Despite the coming loss of their fourth they felt almost complete. Because they weren't halves now, they were fourths. All tied like the lines of a square or the roads out of a cross.

Avery opened his eyes and smiled. Sage smiled back, glad to see his last human smile before he was transformed. She had never known someone before they were changed but she knew there would be a difference in her brother the next time she saw him, three days later. She moved his hair out of his eyes with her blood coated hand.

"Thank you, for being the brother I always wanted." She whispered and kissed his cheek, still pink and fleshy, clean of blood.

Bella broke out a sob and both Avery and Edward winced.

"Don't cry mom. I love you." He clasped her hand in his and stroked the fingers. Edward picked up the other hand.

"I love you, Avery." His breath blew across the cold clammy skin of his son's wrist and he broke the skin.

**Rosslie**


	27. Edge

**This is the last chapter. Yes, I know. I'm sad too, but I'm already working on a sequel and I just have to show it to my betas to see if they think it's worth putting up. Thank you so much for reviewing and saying all these wonderful things about my story. I love all of you guys and I will never show you how grateful I am to all of you. Thank you and enjoy.**

**I own nothing of the Twilight Saga**

_**When we last left off…**_

_Bella broke out a sob and both Avery and Edward winced._

"_Don't cry mom. I love you." He clasped her hand in his and stroked the fingers. Edward picked up the other hand._

"_I love you, Avery." His breath blew across the cold clammy skin of his son's wrist and he broke the skin._

**Now**

_**Seconds to Minutes, Minutes to Hours, Hours to Days, Days to Weeks**_

"I hate you Alice."

Alice sighed, again. "You didn't even miss any fighting. Not even one punch on our part."

"How could you not invite _me_ in on the plan?" Emmett whined.

"Because you'd go blabbering on about it and then when I sent Jasper he would have memories of you not shutting up." Alice reminded him, again.

"No punches?" Rosalie inquired. "Why didn't you kill him? Felix I mean."

"Because," I decided to answer. "It would take so much energy to go around erasing Felix from every vampire in the castle's mind who had even seen him. We didn't have the time. Once Edward bit Avery, we had to leave because of the screams. It was hard enough cleaning up all the blood and finding Demetri too."

Three weeks after we had successfully escaped the Volturi Castle, Edward, Sage, Guiseppe, and I had moved into the Cullens mansion in Bude, England. Leone changed Alcee once we were outside of the castle and agreed to live with Alcee and Avery and try to help them control their blood lust. Because Leone is also reforming to become a vegetarian vampire, Carlisle and Esme agreed to go live with and help him. None of us here in Bude know where the five of them are currently, but Carlisle and Esme promised to contact us once they were able to find an area that had service.

The occupants of the Bude mansion included Emmett, Rosalie, Alice, Jasper, Sage, Guiseppe, Edward and me. Edward and I had already promised Sage and Guiseppe that when she turned 18 she would be allowed to live with Guiseppe and get married. Jacob had already returned to La Push, but promised to return to visit soon.

"Mom!" Sage called down from an upstairs bedroom, her footsteps traveling downstairs. "I'm going to go to the theater and video store, need anything?"

I shook my head. "Got some catching up to do, huh?"

She rolled her eyes. "Yeah, but I'm not the only one. Guiseppe and I are going to watch a bunch of modern movies and he's going to show me some classics. We'll be back by nine at the latest." At her elbow stood Guiseppe, never apart, the two did everything together and only separated when I sent Sage to her own room. She was only sixteen.

"Sure, have fun." Everyone said goodbye to the couple and they left the house. We heard the engine start a few minutes later.

Another few minutes later, we heard the phone ring.

"I'll get it." I assured everyone and picked up the tiny thing. "The Cullen household, this is Isabella speaking."

"Mom?"

"Avery!" I grinned and motioned over to Edward. "It's so good to finally hear from you. How are you?"

"I feel great, all these new enhanced abilities and stuff is really awesome. Grandpa and Grandma are helping with the lust but it's difficult." There was a pause on the other end and then a sigh. "I slipped up."

I didn't stay anything to that, I couldn't.

"I'm really sorry, mom. It was just really hard and it was only one person, really. I saw his history and stuff in my mind when he was you know…" He paused. "_Dead_ and I think he was a rapist anyway. So I'm really sorry and I don't know what to do and I hope that you can forgive me-"

"Avery," I calmed. "Slow down. I'm not mad at you. I completely understand. Everyone slips up because it is hard at first. Uncle Emmett, Uncle Jasper, Aunt Alice, even your dad had a whole rebellious thing going on for a few years where he did take out a few rapists and kidnappers."

"But Aunt Rosalie, Grandpa and _you_ haven't." He said scornfully.

I sighed. "Yes but you'll have that control soon enough. Grandpa has had a lot of practice before he could become a doctor."

"Okay, I'll try harder next time though."

"That's all I can ask."

"Can I talk to dad?"

"Yes, but call your sister right after you talk to him. She's been asking about you constantly; you know she still feels like it's her fault."

"Yeah, I'll talk to her. Her cell's the one that starts with 897, right?" He asked.

"Yes, now here's your father." I handed the phone to Edward.

"Hello?" He started. I left the room to leave them the privacy of having a personal father-son talk.

Edward joined me on our balcony a few minutes later.

"They're in France." He told me.

I nodded. "Why are they so close to the Volturi?"

He shrugged. "I don't think they mean to be. It is just hard traveling with two newborns."

Edward took up my hand, pulling me to toward the edge of the balcony. I grinned and we jumped off, heading to the beach.

We walked hand in hand down the edge of the water until we stopped at a small area where I could only see grass covered hills and opposite, endless water. I faced the setting clouded sun and laid down pulling Edward down next to me so that we could watch the sky change colors. He rested his head on my stomach and I could feel each breath he took in.

"I tried." He whispered as I stroked his hair. "I tried to save you. You and our child, or children as I later found out."

"Shhh…" I shushed gently, stroking his lips. "I know. We both know we tried. Neither of us failed, so you don't have to worry. I know you're sorry and I am too, but we need to move on because that is in the past. We each raised our children right and they will live on. You think that changing a human into a vampire is an ending of a life, but I see it as a beginning. It doesn't matter right now. Nothing matters. We are both here, watching this beautiful moment. All we need is to enjoy it."

Edward looked up at me with his golden eyes. He shifted his position in the sand so that he lied on his side facing me and I shifted with him. We memorized each other's faces and enjoyed the setting sun.

**Rosslie**

_**P.S. If anyone has any questions I'll reply back, or if there are a lot of questions with or a lot of the same questions I'll do a separate chapter. Thank you so much for reading and reviewing my story, I am so thankful for all of you because this is my first story I got over a hundred reviews, so thank you!!**_


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